FAQ: Dave Ramsey and Suze Orman?« Back to Questions List

I listen to Dave Ramsey and/or Suze Orman, can they help me too? I’ve listened to each of these financial coaches and both of them have good ideas and valuable advice for people looking to reign in out-of-balance budgets and get a handle on out-of-control debt.  To their credit, both have helped millions get out of debt.  Bear in mind, these speakers and authors make a great deal of their profits marketing to the negative-net-worth masses.  Why?  Because it’s a very, very large audience! They have good things to say in general, and while I don’t have issues with their general content, each has some shortcomings once they’ve helped you escape oppressive debt.  For instance, Ramsey’s system does help people tunnel out of debt onto an improved financial footing, but his total disregard for the ability to use credit to leverage your financial opportunities is very shortsighted.  His outspoken disdain for assets that are not soaked with third-party-risk is another highly suspect perspective. Keep in mind who their audience is and don’t just look only at their proprietary materials for all your answers.  Get curious and look elsewhere and compare what you learn from one person to what you learn from the next.  The truth usually surfaces through a little compare and contrast effort! I found the Google Search on ”Is Dave Ramsey’s advice accurate?” quite interesting.  You might do the same for Suze Orman and Robert Kiyosaki.  Each is popular and well marketed, while I’m still building a business and a following. I take my students and clients beyond getting out of debt and focus on building and passing wealth over generations.  If you aren’t quite ready for wealth building, you’ll find the skill set to get you there in my MoneySmart Solutions book.