Dave Ramsey, The Financial Guru and Consumer Advocate

In case some of you have been living under a rock, or just not paying attention to the financial/money sections on your news/media sites, Dave Ramsey has been all over the place. First on 60 Minutes, then on Oprah, now on The Early Show every other Tuesday. The guy is just everywhere and if you haven't listened to his radio show, you need to. There are some things you may not agree with, most things you will though. But the guy knows what he's talking about.

I setup a Google Alert so I can get the latest links to any articles that talk about Dave or just mention him. Most of the alerts I've received are merely churches or places announcing the schedule for Financial Peace University, a 13-week financial course taught by, none other than, Dave Ramsey (via video). We're in our 12th week of the program and I have to admit that it has been an excellent course on financial basics. It's the type of financial course for normal, hardworking Joe's that know little about finances and even less about the how-to's of budgeting and paying off debt. The course touches on everything that a household would encounter financially: budgeting, paying off debt, saving, insurance, real estate and mortgages, investing, collector's and credit bureaus and, even giving.

Of course, if you've actually read any of my posts you'd know that I am huge fan of Dave Ramsey. One main reason why I think so highly of this guy: he not only helped us get our finances back in order, but gave us hope for the future. He does this for everyone that does what he teaches. Sure, it's difficult to get a grasp of his concepts initially but once you do, you start to do something that seemed impossible--make progress.

Dave has written a book called the Total Money Makeover that outlines the basic principles to getting out of debt and building wealth. I'll outline them here so you can get an idea of what he teaches. For more in-depth description and application, I recommend you buy the book. And, when you get a chance to, listen to his radio show.

Dave Ramsey's Baby Steps:
Step One
Save $1,000 in an emergency fund

Step Two
Use the debt-snowball to pay off everything but the house

Step Three
Save 3 to 6 months of your household expenses in an emergency fund (same fund as Step One)

Step Four
Put 15% of your monthly income into Roth IRAs or pre-tax investment

Step Five
Start a college fund

Step Six
Pay-off the house

Step Seven
Build wealth in mutual funds, real estate and other investments

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Links/articles about Dave Ramsey:
Winter Tales: Tales of clutter offer cautionary lessons
RockyMountainNews.com

13 Ways to Live Well On Less
MSNmoney

The Anti-Debt Crusader (PDF)
NYtimes.com

Dave Ramsey (Wikipedia)