Meet Dave

The rich rules over the poor,  and the borrower is servant to the lender.   Proverbs 22:7 (NKJV)

Several years ago a group of our friends went through Financial Peace University and it got me hooked.  I had never heard of Dave Ramsey or his FPU program, but I borrowed some books and was quickly completely engrossed by it.  I didn't go through his course at the time when our friends did because Jay works shiftwork and I didn't want to go to the classes by myself.  Thankfully, my friends were nice enough to loan me the materials.  It changed our lives.

I had never been terrible with money, but I wasn't good with it either.  I/we always believed that as long as we could make the payment on something, we could buy it...and it works okay unless something changes or Murphy moves in.  Fortunately for us, we never had a major setback anywhere along our poor financial road.  We always met our deadlines and weren't in trouble with credit people or anything, but it was often a struggle. 

In September of 2006, I began listening to the CD's of the FPU program.  Jay, who is always supportive of my endeavors, wasn't necessarily onboard, but he wasn't against me either.  I got the usual, do-whatever-you-think-is-best-and-I'll-go-along-with-it-the-best-I-can statement.  So I did.  I developed a game plan and did my best.  It was difficult at times but I was fortunate that a bunch of our friends were doing it at the same time so no one thought we were completely nuts.

And let me tell you, people will think you're nuts.  I'm sure, wait, I KNOW people thought I had lost it.  I totally revamped how I did things.  This included no longer shopping until my heart's content, spending money at the Doller General on...I'm not sure exactly...watching every penny, using cash only, carrying around labeled envelopes in my purse with the set amount of cash in them.  After about six months of watching my magic in action (I should say Dave's magic), Jay realized I was onto something and went berserk with me.  It was that moment when we both agreed...we both have decent jobs, why do we live paycheck to paycheck?  This is crazy.  We followed Dave's plan and paid stuff off left and right

We had decided early on that we didn't really want to get rid of anything, we liked our "toys" and knew that if we got rid of them, we would just end up buying newer ones and that would cost more...So we kept our stuff and paid it off.  We conquered the babysteps and completed our debt snowball...to a point anyway.  After about 14 months, I think, we had paid off everything we had but our house and had a six-month emergency fund.  It was absolutely amazing. 

If you follow Dave's on-air program, he has Debt-Free Fridays where people call in and scream "I'm Debt Free!"  Dave asks what the hardest part was, how long it took and how much you paid off.  On February 15, 2008, our Jay, the kids & I made the call.  All four of us shouted into the phone those three famous words, "We're debt-free."  It was so exciting.  Our kids were even excited.  I quit my full-time job and worked out of the house for a couple years.  It truly was a pivotal event in our adult lives.  We aren't quite on track as we once were, but still live by some of his basic principles.  And honestly, I probably could use a refresher course right now.  We use cash as much as possible and no longer own a credit card (except Maurices and Menards for coupons and rebates, but don't tell).

There is no question that it is a very difficult and disciplined process to go through, but it is so worth it.  If you have money struggles, I urge you to tuck your tail and go to www.daveramsey.com.  Listen to his radio program as much as possible.  Order his book, the Total Money Makeover and read it twice.  Don't be proud or embarrassed.  Don't be a servant to the lender...Be free.