Why I HATED Dave Ramsey…..

How Could I HATE this man???

Dave, if you’re reading this, I am so honored… Please keep reading!! =) =)

So, it doesn’t seem long ago at all that I “met” Dave Ramsey.  When I first started homeschooling, my group decided to do a weekly financial “support group” for the adults – which was based on the teachings of Dave Ramsey.  Great!  Sign me up.

Week one, I knew we were in trouble – which I DIDN’T expect since Chris and I were the only true dual-income family in the group. It started with a discussion about expenses, and a comment written by Dave about Starbucks coffee.  Now, I’ve found there are two general schools of thought on this one:

1.)  I don’t want to be debt – free THAT BAD – if it means  I have to do without my daily or weekly cup of Starbucks coffee!!! =) and

2.) Americans are sooooo spoiled that we really now see going without a $4 cup of coffee as a sacrifice….

I have to be honest. I fell into NEITHER  group.  Instead I was totally and completely shocked.  As the “debate” raged on, I realized that WE must have been the true “paupers” of this obviously affluent group of homeschoolers.  I mean, my ONLY thought was this:

YOU MEAN YOU GUYS ACTUALLY SPEND $4.00 ON COFFEE EVERY DAY OR WEEK?????

Seriously, here’s how Starbucks came up in OUR house at the time….  My husband and I would go out to dinner (like once a month or something) and we would split a meal (of course!).  Afterwards we would decide… do we go to ColdStone Creamery or Starbucks?  I mean, it was a decision… our funds were limited.  A daily – or even weekly – cup of Starbucks?  Um…. no.  At the time, there were weeks we couldn’t have afforded saline solution for our contacts, let alone coffee at the store we not-so-affectionately referred to as “FourBucks”.   I’m glad those days are gone.

So, why HATE Dave?  Well, I don’t really…. not then and CERTAINLY not now.   It’s just that we sat through weeks of that group study and kept coming up against “steps” we couldn’t take to better our financial situation.  Give up Starbucks?  Already done.  Pay down high interest credit cards?  We didn’t have any credit cards at all.  You know, it was like reading a fitness  article about ONE STEP TO LOSE 20 POUNDS… and it talks about giving up fried foods. Well, what about if you’ve never really eaten fried foods?  What’s MY “one step”….. =)

Dave, of course, offers much more advice than giving up Starbucks…. and I’ve come to love his radio show and his TV show as well.  AND SO, when he invited my friend Tory Johnson on to discuss starting a business, I was transformed into a huge FAN.  Because sometimes – dare I say a LOT of times in our new economy –  it’s about making MORE money…

Growing up, we always took a family vacation down to the OBX of North Carolina.  We lived paycheck to paycheck, but always had a vacation.  Could we afford it? NO.  We were paycheck to paycheck.  But, we did it – every summer – for two weeks.   Because my parents would ask, “HOW can we afford it?”  The answer, more often than not, came in the form of  my Dad picking up a side job and designating that money for the trip.  But, it was a valuable lesson… and one that he and my Mom taught well.  It wasn’t “We can’t afford it.”  it was “HOW can we afford it?”

Recently, I’ve been immersing myself in the upcoming www.sparkandhustle.com National Conference.  Tory and I have hosted tele-seminars, we’re chatting with women live on the Spark and Hustle website, and we’re doing all we can to eliminate any possible barrier to the entrepreneur SERIOUS about making more money being able to attend.   Still, I hear from women who say, “I can’t afford to come.”  Now, this is a 3 figure investment…. $795 to be exact.  (To be fair, some of these women can’t afford to come….. it is just not the right time for them given their personal circumstances.)  But for MOST of them… given the bottom-line value of THIS conference… I’d bet even Suze Orman would “approve” this investment.  (Note to self… I should pose as a caller on Suze’s show to see if she’d approve this “purchase”…. Hmm…..)

Because sometimes, NOT taking action…. SAVING $795 while you persist in a course of action that ISN’T providing bottom-line success… that isn’t profitable for you…. will cost you much more in the short and the long term.  I learned that in that home school  financial support group.  While my “peers” discussed interest and coupons, I was feverishly creating plans to MAKE more money.  (But, don’t worry…  it looked like I was taking notes.)  =) =)

P.S.  At Spark and Hustle, we’ll be covering – for three days – the ONE thing you need in order to succeed in business… SALES, SALES, and MORE SALES….  As Dan Kennedy says, “If you don’t have a system to encourage them to buy, you’re at the mercy of their system NOT to buy. And they have one.”  =) =)

P.P.S.  If YOU need more money from YOUR business efforts, email me at michelle@womenwhowow.com for a 20 page report on developing YOUR Sales SAVVY… Step-by – step guide… My gift to you….