Why You Need To Vote in Every Presidential Election
01:28:16 Share

Live from the headquarters of Ramsey Solutions, it's The Ramsey Show, where we help people build wealth, do work that they love, and create actual amazing relationships. Number one best-selling author, host of The Rachel Cruze Show, co-host of The Smart Money Happy Hour.

Ramsey Personality. My daughter is my co-host today. The phone number is 888-825-5225. You jump in, we'll talk about your life and your money. So Rachel, I'm going to do something that we don't do 99% of the time on this show. This show is about our callers and their opportunities, their problems, the things that we can help them with in general.

We are neck deep in the middle of an election season, and I'll be early voting this week, and then I'm going to be away from the microphone a little while. So I'm going to take a minute here and walk you guys through something, and just stay with me a minute, okay? So here's the thing. Most people in America have already decided who they're going to vote for.

You agree with that? Yes. The idea that there's a big block of undecided people out there wandering around is kind of absurd, really.

there's really not a bunch of people walking around with their head in the fog and go oh i think i think all of a sudden i need to learn about this it's like no they you know about it everybody's talking about it it's everywhere you can't get away from it we're sick of it we're tired of all these people we're sick of the whole freaking thing most of us anyway i mean some of you are really into it you're not sick of it you just love every moment of it and you're going to be desperately have a political hangover in the middle of november but anyway the rest of us are like yeah okay we can

We got it. We know what we're going to do. And there's not a big block of undecideds that are going to swing this election. I'll tell you who I do want to address, though. There is a large block of people that are not planning to vote at all. And I'm going to be straight with you. I think that's a mistake. Okay?

And I want to walk through with you just a basic decision-making paradigm on that idea. So my friend Simon Sinek, who wrote the book Start With Why, Infinite Game, many others, we've spoken on stages together. We've been in think tanks together. We've been friends for years. I follow him on Instagram. It popped up on his Instagram, Rachel, yesterday or day before yesterday that he had interviewed President Joe Biden.

And the interview on his podcast, by the way, folks, landed last night. And I was able to listen to it this morning. It is really good. It's really good. I did a really good interview with Donald Trump. And if you haven't seen that, you ought to watch it. But this is better. It's better. Simon did a better job than I did. And to the point that I saw things in Joe Biden that I've never seen before. Mm-hmm.

And so I enjoy getting information and perspective on things that I didn't have. I'm not challenged by my belief system isn't challenged because I learned something about someone I disagree with that I actually like. Yeah. You know, that doesn't bother me. I'm it's not it doesn't cause me to melt down. So anyway, I'm going to recommend highly that you go to Simon Sinek's podcast and listen to this interview. It's really good.

Obviously, President Joe Biden is not in the thing. Oh, by the way, side note, some of you that were griping about me interviewing President Trump kept telling me it's former President Trump, former President Trump. No, that's not correct protocol. I have a friend that passed away a few years ago that was the ambassador to France. It was Ambassador Joe Rogers. He was a Tennessean. He lived here in Nashville. I knew him in the real estate business. And from the time he was an ambassador in France, the rest of his life he was known as Ambassador Rogers.

Everywhere I went that he was introduced, he was introduced as Ambassador Rogers. If you introduce Bill Clinton, you introduce him as President Clinton, President Bill Clinton, not former President Clinton. Someone who served as a senator for the rest of their lives, they're called a senator.

That is normal protocol. So some of you that are mouthing off about that, you're just wrong. You don't know what the flip you're talking about, as usual, when you're running your dadgum mouth on stuff like that. Okay, so anyway. That was a sidebar. Oh, by the way, I'll tell you another one. No, no, stick with your points. You know things down. You never do this. You never do this. You need to go watch Brett Baer.

tonight brett one of the more level-headed people on fox has gotten an interview with vice president harris oh great the one i wished i had gotten yes yeah and you need to go watch that i'm going to be watching it uh i'll recommend that one as well because brett's pretty i like all yeah he's pretty he's pretty straight he's not like blah blah he's not going crazy yeah so here's the thing 49 of evangelical christians surveyed right now say they're not going to vote

Wait, how many? Forty nine percent. Dang. That's my brothers and sisters in Christ, because they're disgusted with the quality of the character of both candidates in their minds. That's what the thing comes out. And that's understandable.

16% of gun owners say they're not going to vote. And that's just because they don't want to get on the grid. They don't want anybody to know where they are. Because some of you are just weirdos. Okay? And you don't have to be a weirdo to have a gun. I've got guns. No, no, I will vote. But I do think they know a lot about us. They know a lot about us. I don't think voting is going to cause them to know more or less. I know, I know. Okay, keep going. So here's the thing. You're not voting for a savior. If so, neither one of these would be qualified.

you're not even voting for a pastor. If so, neither one of these would be qualified. What happens in your house is more important to your success than what happens in the White House, but what happens in the White House does affect your life, and to not vote at all out of disgust is bad decision-making paradigm. You should make a list of the eight or ten issues that are out there

and which side each candidate falls on, and regardless of the candidate themselves, I don't believe in voting on a single issue. If you want to vote single-issue voter, you can, but I don't vote on a single issue. There's not a single issue that I will vote on above everything else. I mean, there's things that are more important or less important, but, like, you know, there are people that say, okay, pro-choice or pro-life.

I will not vote anything except that on any other issue. I could disagree with them on everything, and I still get my vote because of that. I don't believe in that. I believe in looking at the whole thing and saying, okay, there's the economy, there's inflation, there's interest rates, there's taxes. Which candidate falls on the side of those things that you believe you can fix or that they're going to impact? There's the border, the immigration issue that is real.

Which candidate falls on that? Check the box, right? Check the box. Pro-life, pro-abortion.

Okay, well, it's Democrat and Republican, very clearly on that. Okay, although Trump is not going to do anything on a federal level for pro-life. He's just going to let the overturn of Roe v. Wade run its course and the states decide. Kamala is going to be pro-abortion, period. And they've said this very clearly. I mean, it's a standard plank in their party, okay? Pro-Second Amendment.

No question which one you're going to check there on which, if you're pro-gun or you're anti-gun. If you're anti-gun, you need to vote for Vice President Harris.

Even though she has one? If you're pro-gun rights, just because you got one doesn't matter. If you're pro-gun rights, you cannot put a check over there. Again, I'm not going to vote on a single issue. If you're really concerned about the social issues around woke. Can I jump in? What about writing in a name? Does that count? You can, but I think one of these two is going to be president and you should participate. Yes, but if I have a conviction as an American to...

Actively vote Because I do believe in that Yep If someone out there Just to even You know Practice Yep That action Write someone in Yep So I'm going to tell you I'm voting

for Donald Trump, not because I'm voting for Donald Trump. Oh my gosh, are we going here? It's okay. But because I'm, I checked those boxes and more of those are on that side than on the other side. I'm going to hold my nose and I'm going to vote. I might vote for Ken Coleman. Ken Coleman. We could vote for Ken Coleman, but I'm not. Definitely not. This is The Ramsey Show.

Mortgage rates have dropped, so if you're thinking about buying a home in the next year, contact your local Churchill Mortgage team right now. If you wait, more people will be in the market competing for the same homes and potentially driving up prices. Churchill will help you do the math to be sure your budget is correct, making your home a blessing and helping you build lasting wealth. Learn more at ChurchillMortgage.com.

churchillmortgage.com. This is a paid advertisement. NMLS ID 1591. NMLSConsumeraccess.org. Equal housing lender. 1749 Mallory Lane, Suite 100. Brentwood, Tennessee 37027. Rachel Cruz, Ramsey Personality is my co-host today. Thank you for joining us. All right, I want to wrap up that thought and then we'll move on with the callers, okay? Here's the thing.

I have voted in every single election since I turned 18 years old, presidential election or otherwise. I've not missed a single time to cast my vote as an American. I believe it's a patriotic duty. I believe it is a right. And I got to tell you, I think every single vote I've ever cast, I disagreed with the person I voted for on at least something, or I wished something was different about them.

And so as my friend Steven Mansfield so eloquently put a while back, he said, all of us, if we're honest and have good decision-making skills and independent thought,

All of us are not worshipers of candidates. Now, there are some of you that are worshipers of candidates, and you lose your freaking minds on this stuff. But I'm not one of them, okay? I'm looking at ideas and which ideas land on which side of the aisle. Where am I most likely going to get a tax policy I like, an immigration policy I like, a foreign policy I like?

Where am I most likely to get a gun policy I like, a climate change policy I like, a woke policy I like that I agree with? Where am I most likely to get that? And I can check those boxes very clearly, very quickly on these two candidates. And then based on that, none of them are going to be 100% on what I want them to be in personal character, in personality style, in history, in...

even where they stand on the issues. None of them are 100% exactly who I want them to be. So that means 100% of the votes I have cast and I've voted in every election, I've held my nose and voted anyway. There's something I didn't like, but I voted anyway for the one that most aligned with all the different issues.

Plus or minus, right? And again, I've never thought I was voting for a savior, and I never thought I was voting for a pastor. Some of you think you are, and that has you all disillusioned. But I don't think you could find a president.

that you go back and go well this was a holy man this was billy graham there's no billy graham ever been in the white house okay it just hasn't it's not this doesn't happen there's some some that were better than others some that were more slimy than others for sure but it's just not it's not like their job billy graham that was his job and so it's a different thing so i i suggest you hold your nose and you vote and that's what i that's what i don't mean i i

I think they stink and I'm saying there's something I disagree with and I'm going to vote anyway. And that's how I made the decision to vote for Trump was the boxes that were checked. And if you want to vote the other way, as long as you're being thoughtful about it and you're being a nice person, we're still friends. I'm okay with you. I'm not mad at you. Some of you are never going to listen to me again after this. That's okay. I can deal with that. That's happened to me for 30 years. People have threatened me. I'm going to cancel you. That's hard to do. I own the show. Yeah.

And so you're not going to get to cancel me. So you can leave, but you can't cancel me. So that's what I want to talk about. And then the other thing I want to tell you guys, speaking of interviews, I want you to pick up Simon's interview, Simon Sinek. Pick up Brett Baer's interview on the politics, non-politics, 98% non-politics.

We actually got to sit down long form and hang out with Ben Shapiro last week, and that landed today on the Ramsey Network app, and tomorrow it'll be on our podcast and on our YouTube. And so don't miss Ben Shapiro. Very brilliant guy. Long form interview. We got to talk about Judaism. He's an Orthodox Jew. I'm a Christian. And we've got a lot of friends in both camps, and we had a great discussion on some of that stuff. Marriage issues. Ben on marriage issues.

That's something very different. Yeah, interesting. Because his mind's like a freaking steel trap. He's very interesting. So very cool. Talks about life. Yeah, we did. And so be sure and tune in for all that.

So what do you want to add to that? Anything you just wish I hadn't gone there or what? No, it's not that I wish you hadn't gone there. I'm shocked you did to a degree. I was like, oh my gosh, are we saying who we're voting for right now? No, I think, you know, last time we were in Epcot with our kids, I made my girls go to the American Adventure. It's a show in the America part of Epcot and it's about American history. It's 30 minutes long and they have Roosevelt. They have all these presidents that come and tell the history of America and you leave that and you...

And you just think, I am proud. I am proud to be an American, even though, you know, there were elements of our history that we're not proud of, but who we are as this country. So I think the rights and the responsibility to vote is huge. And I think that's an older generational thing. So I kind of see you as Papa Dave a little bit in that segment of like, hey,

especially to the younger generation. I think it's more of the younger ones that don't feel the seriousness of voting. So I love the message of go vote. Your vote does count. Yes, go vote. Because I think that that is a part of America that's beautiful. And so do it. And by not voting, you can swing an election. Yes, for sure.

Big time. Yeah. And that's wrong. Yeah. So vote for who you, yep, vote for who you agree with. I agree. I think that's a great point. If Kamala, because of this speech, is a landslide and you guys all exercise your vote, I'll take that. Yes. I'm fine. Yes. I'm fine. That's okay. Yes. Because I want you to get up off your butts. I want you to think clearly for yourself. Don't stick your head so far up your party that you can't think. And some people do. They can't. Everything that's on that side is right. No, it's not. No, it's not.

And all the people that are on that side are right. No, I have met kookazoids on both sides. I mean, complete crazy people that should be in a padded cell. Don't tell me everybody that falls on one side of the other is right. They're not. They're just not. Some of them are...

You're not voting for a savior, folks. Anyway, last thing you're going to hear on politics and Ramsey for a long, long time, I hope, because I really don't want to do a political show. It's not what I want to do. I don't even enjoy it. Rachel actually enjoys it somewhat. We have some great Rachel one-sided family discussions at dinner about all this stuff. One-sided? Just me, a monologue? Yeah. Just monologuing? We definitely have you stirred up, for sure.

And you can go there. But they're a lot of fun, and it's always entertaining, but it's not what we do on the radio. We're here to help Morgan in Pensacola. Hi, Morgan. Welcome to The Ramsey Show. What's up?

Hey, just letting you know, I will be most definitely voting. And me and Rachel have that in common. I love talking about politics and I love politics. So good, Morgan. Well, good. That's why you didn't hang up while I was doing all that in your own home, right? Oh, no. I thoroughly enjoyed that. Anyway, so just short and sweet. Yeah.

uh, last year, um, my parents needed a place to go and, um, it was a consensus that they move here on the property and they said, Hey, or my dad said, Hey, we will give you a certain amount of money, uh, per month. It'll help you guys out, help us out. Um, we, we said, sure, that sounds great. And then, um, that happened for like,

Maybe a month or two, and then it kind of has been very sporadic since, like maybe $100 here and $100 there. How much is he supposed to be paying you? About $850. Okay, and that's what he promised. He brought it up. You didn't even bring it up. Yeah, he threw out that number. Okay, the first time he missed, why did you not say something? I just had... Hello? Hello?

Did we lose you, Morgan? Now she hung up. Oh, shoot. Darn. Well, we'll see if we can get her back for another segment then. Oh, man. Shoot, Morgan, sorry. Sorry about that. Here's the thing. If you don't bring something up that's obvious, people think it's okay.

Like when he didn't pay and she didn't say anything, he starts to think it's okay. Because she probably felt bad of like, oh, well, I'm sure it's, yeah. Because the consensus was, apparently with her brothers and sisters, I don't know that they're going to help mom and dad out. So I think what you need to establish is, does it matter? If you're going to let them live there free,

then whether he pays or not doesn't matter. Just forget it. Whenever he sends a check, that's fine. Don't worry about it. If there's something else going on that they're wasting money or something, you need to help them with that and coach them. That's fine. If you really want to hold their feet to the fire on accountability, start having discussions about this early and often. But where you made the mistake was not early. So that's going to be the answer to your question, I think. But if we can get you back, we'll hear the rest of the story. And that's how we do it here. This is The Ramsey Show.

I've been doing this show for over 30 years and some of the saddest calls I have taken are from situations that are completely preventable. Yeah, and what's so hard is I feel like one of those, especially the ones that I'm like, oh, it's terrible, are people that call in and their spouse has passed away suddenly and they don't have life insurance. When you have to think through how am I going to pay my bills? How

I'm going to eat next week. Yeah, in the middle of all that grief. Like it's just, it is, it's terrible. So life insurance is the one thing, especially as a mom with three little kids that I'm like so big on for people to get because it's inexpensive. Zander is the place that Winston and I actually get all of our life insurance. And it doesn't cost much because Zander shops among a gazillion different companies. It doesn't cost much. You just have to admit that someday you're not going to be here.

You've got to say it out loud, and you've got to say, I'm going to say I love you to my family by taking care of them and taking the time to put this stuff in place. The cost of a stinking pizza. To get a free quote, call 800-356-4282. That's 800-356-4282, or go to zander.com.

Rachel Cruz, Ramsey personality. My daughter is my co-host today. Jeffrey and Julianne are with us. Hey guys, how are you? Hi. Hi there. Where do you guys live? We are from Ontario, Canada. Welcome to Nashville. And how much debt have you two paid off? So 110 in consumer debt.

And 345 total. So 235 was our mortgage and 110 was consumer debt. You paid off your house. So great. Looking at weird people. The total was what? What did you say? The total? 345. 345. Okay. 235 house, 110 consumer. So great, you guys. Congratulations. How long did that take? Seven years, start to finish. Wow.

And your range of income during that time? We started at about $120,000 and our highest year was $350,000. Wow, good for you. What do you all do for a living? I'm a real estate appraiser. And I'm an underground miner. Okay, very good. OT. Lots of OT. Yeah, and that's good money. That's really good OT right there.

Wow. So what started this whole process seven years ago with this Ramsey thing, getting out of debt thing? It was a scary tax bill. So similar to your IRS. I got our tax bill and we weren't prepared. And so that made us realize that our finances were an absolute mess and we had no communication skills whatsoever.

So we decided to clean it up, got our act together. And after searching for some plans, we found yours and it just made sense. It was simple. It was easy to follow.

So we jumped on. Good for you guys. Incredible. So before you guys were scattered, you said you really didn't talk about money. So what's the, what's the before and after picture as you're standing on this stage from where you guys were seven years ago, even as a married couple, right? I mean like your whole life versus today, what is that transformation like? Well, it's just, we're being honest with ourselves now, um, not hiding anything from each other or making purchases without talking to each other. Uh,

Back then, it was just a lot of fly by, seat your pants. A lot of individuality. Yes, totally. Yeah. So how has that increased your marriage unity and everything? Yeah, for sure. Because we agree on what we're spending money on. And really, it's everything. It's not just...

And sometimes we laugh because he'll say like, well, I got to talk to my wife. And it's not like, you know, I have a whip type thing. But it's more just because we want to agree. We want to do this together. And is this decision in line with our plans? And that's why we'll discuss. So great. What was the 110? You said consumer debt. Was it credit cards, loans, everything? Yeah. Credit cards, loans, personal loans, vehicles. Vehicles.

Yeah. So we started off, we sold the two vehicles right away. Okay. That was about 55,000 of the debt was gone.

And then the remaining $55,000 was paid over a year. Oh my gosh. You all did that quick. Yeah. I had to let go. I had ATVs, snow machines, all the fun toys. All the toys. So a toy collector. Yeah. Once I let go of that, put them for sale, it was real. And Jeff had a real Dave car. He had a $1,500 car that he got from a buddy. Oh,

Oh, yeah, there it is. There it is on YouTube. That's nasty. Yeah. And it was funny because his weekly paychecks were more than $1,500, but he's driving that thing around. And his buddies are going, what are you doing? Yeah, exactly. But I had a good friend who helped me out, and it was his mom's old car, so when he heard the journey we were jumping on, he sold that to me. What was that, a Ford Fairlane or something? Crown Victoria. Crown Victoria. I thought it was, yeah. A land yacht. Yeah.

Yeah. Wow. Yeah. Very cool. How many miles did it have on it? Actually, not that many. It was his mom's old car. It was just ugly and old. She drove from home to work, which was only a few kilometers. So it had a lot of life left in it. Oh, it did. Did it ever? Yeah, it was actually in great shape. That's the problem. It would have lasted too long. Oh, my goodness. Yes.

Yeah. Okay. So was that part hard? Because for a lot of people getting out of debt, the sacrificial end of the lifestyle, right? Decreasing lifestyle to get margin. Right. And when you're used to living a certain way to what can feel like going backwards to obviously move forward, you're doing it for a reason. How was that? Was that, was that hard? Yeah.

It was. I can go with that ego, especially making, you know, we were making good money, just not smart with it. So, you know, surrounded by nice vehicles at work in the parking lot and then driving in with that. Once you put that aside, there was an end game. We knew it wasn't forever. And now we're back into the vehicles that we had in the past.

So good. Yeah. So it feels really great. We just had to decide in that moment that we didn't care what people thought. Yeah. Like if they laughed, whatever, like they don't see our bank account. They don't see our net worth going up. And actually that's a huge tip that I can add is that we tracked our net worth every month. We would look at all our accounts and the debts and just track it. So we started at a 27,000 net worth and now we're at 1.3 in seven years. So if they laughed at our card,

our car, that's fine. Check this out. I don't see your net worth statement. But no one sees that, right? No, they don't. No, it's like the secret thing. You know, it's the secret number that no one knows. And people that look like they have a high one, you assume, oh my gosh, they're doing so well. But usually they're just normal and have payments. Yeah. Wow.

Way to go, you guys. That's a perfect paradigm. That's a perfect way of looking at it. They don't get a vote because they don't get to see everything. So, and, you know, there's a high correlation between people that build wealth and those that quit caring what other people think. Yeah, yeah. It really is. It's a huge thing. This need to impress is very expensive. It's a very expensive hobby.

And so what's the first big thing you're going to do to celebrate? We're here. Oh, yeah. What are you going to do big? Cool. I don't know. It's hard to think big. We've been limited for so long. But this is our first family trip since the journey. Yeah. So it's going to be a week long. We're going to catch a hockey game. Oh, good. Okay. And make it fun. Good Predators game while you're here in Nashville then. Yeah. It's also symbolic. I had a trip to Nashville yesterday.

booked for July 2016 when we decided in April to get out of debt I canceled that trip so it's full circle here I am back after you're completely debt-free incredible that's a good that's a good mark right so not only to see you but Nashville was totally totally oh I love it we're not the only cool thing in Nashville so there you go I know you guys have have a little guy what how old is he

Eli is 10 years old. He's 10. Okay. Eli, go on up with your mom and dad. So he was three when you guys kind of started this. Yes. So you had a little one. His Christmas during our baby step two, he got $2 store mini sticks. So $2. That's all he got. But he was young enough he didn't know. He didn't know. He didn't play with the box anyway. Yeah.

Oh, so great, you guys. Oh, look at the little baby picture. That's great. Oh, there. There he is. Sticks. Yeah. So good. He's a cute kid. Oh, my gosh. Well done, you guys. All right. What's the secret to getting out of debt when people ask you?

What are the things they ought to do? Communication. That's key. Communicate together. Weekly budget meetings. Yes. Not caring what people think. Yeah. Not giving up when it's hard. Yeah, you're not kidding when you say you'll pass out before. Yeah, before you die. I did some long hours and you were right about that. You didn't die from hard work. No, exactly. Right before you die, you'll pass out. Hey, Jeff, talk to the guy out there that's got a big old...

some kind of collection of something that's toy type stuff. What did your emotions go through?

How did you flip the switch to go, my wife and my baby are more important than this collection of stuff? Because that's what happened in your head. It had to be. Yeah. Just be honest. Trust the process. It's not forever. You'll get those things back. Whether it may not be exactly the model you had before. But then you'll realize that having a nice truck doesn't mean big tires. You can get that, but...

It's good. Yeah. Still enjoy and be happy with it. So yeah. Fun. Fun. Yeah. I've got more toys than I had before I went broke. So, I mean, it's like we went broke, lost them all and, you know, live like no one else. And now we can drive and play like no one else. Right. Do whatever we want to do. So, well, I'm proud of you guys. Way to go. You're heroes. Well done. You changed that young man, Eli's whole life. His family trees changed because you two grew up. Way to go.

Very well done. Jeffrey, Julianne, and Eli, $345,000 paid off, 1.7? 1.3. $1.3 million net worth, Baby Steps Millionaires in seven years making $120,000 to $350,000. Count it down. Let's hear a debt-free scream. Three, two, one. We're debt-free! Yeah! Woo! Woo!

The ones that pay off their house and do their debt-free scream are often Baby Steps Millionaires simultaneously. Be watching that. That number's there. This is The Ramsey Show.

You've been working the Ramsey plan and you've made real progress. But if something happened to you tomorrow, would your loved ones be able to access all the account info you've got stored on your computer, phone, or even scraps of paper? Knockbox can help. That's Knockbox. N-O-K, as in next of kin, box is a complete system that organizes your important documents, accounts, IDs, taxidermy,

tax returns, insurance policies, estate plans, and other personal history in one secure place to help protect what you have worked for. So ditch the thumb drives and file cabinets and organize your digital and paper files with Knockbox. You'll leave memories, not a mess. Get your family's Knockbox today at knockbox.com slash Ramsey. That's N-O-K-box.com slash Ramsey.

Student loan debt is an epidemic, a pandemic, and defaulting on debt makes you feel even worse. But our question of the day sponsor, WhyRefi, refinances defaulted debt.

private student loans and builds a custom loan based on your ability to pay. You'll have a payment you can afford with a low fixed interest rate that you couldn't get anywhere else. Go to YRefi.com today slash Ramsey. That's the letter Y-R-E-F-Y dot com slash Ramsey. Might not be in all states.

Today's question comes from Carter in New Hampshire. He says, my wife and I are avid listeners, but we don't share the same views financially. I'm an analyzer when it comes to finances and it annoys her to no end. I have a two-year emergency fund and our home is paid off. Together, we earn $200,000 a year. She likes to spend and wants me to co-sign on a vehicle that's $80,000. She has $10,000 in credit card debt

And she pays $15,000 each year for private school for our kids. If I mention anything about money, I'm the one who's wrong. I wish I could say that we pay for vacations, recreational toys and trips, but these funds come from my checking account and she gets mad when I say that I pay for them. Is it okay to have an account together to pay bills and separate for spending accounts?

I mean, I think you guys are disjointed completely when it comes to money. I mean, obviously this is like a pick and choose what we want to do together and what we don't. And I think the goal here is that you are a unified team with all of it, right? All of it together. So the spending, the saving, where your kids are going to college or to school, where you guys, you know, what kind of cars you guys buy that you are in agreement together and

in those things and so some we know she's a spender so you guys are in a great position you have no debt you have great emergency funds so if she wants to go spend a little you can't be crazy and be like no you can't spend anything right and you sound a little bit you sound a little crazy to a degree carter uh that she just wants a little bit of freedom but then she on the other end is not

What it sounds like... $80,000 car debt. And credit card debt. That's crazy. The same value system, though, is what's not being played out. So I think that's the issue, is that you guys are functioning not on the same value system, and so it's looking...

like a mess like this. And the accounts, that doesn't fix it. I don't think they have a money problem. I think they have a marriage problem. Right, but that's the problem is people think, is it okay if we just have separate accounts? And what that does is it sweeps the one issue that you actually need to talk about under the rug. It doesn't fix it. It actually continues to alienate you guys from each other. So no, Carter, I would not do these separate accounts. I would force you guys to work out of one account because to your point, it's actually going to reveal other people's

other issues that are actually going on in your marriage. Yeah. And I'm the one that's wrong. She gets mad. You know, if you just change out the subject and it wasn't money and you were talking about something else and she acted that way or you acted that way, you overanalyzed everything, which is what you're doing for sure. And on the other hand, then she's acting like a princess and stomping her foot with her little red face out until I get what I want.

And if you don't let me have what I want, then you're wrong. This is a marriage problem. You guys desperately need to sit down with someone because here's the problem. Okay. The probability that you have a high quality marriage going forward using this system is close to zero. You may or may not get divorced later, but you're definitely not having fun in your relationship.

And the probability that you build wealth with both of you pulling at each other the whole time instead of pulling the wagon? No, almost zero. One of the things we found when we studied wealthy people is the data tells us that they work together with their spouse. They're unified in their goals. They're aiming at the same target and pulling the trigger together. That's what we're doing. And

You can't drag along a princess. She can't drag along someone who overanalyzes everything and has no fun left anywhere in life because you squeeze every dollar until George Washington screams. And no, you can't. You got it. You got to have something in here. We got to have some flow to this, some relationship to this that's not in here. And so, yeah, this desperately screams of a need for marriage counseling to me.

For sure. Open phones at 888-825-5225. Bo's with us in Las Vegas. Hi, Bo. How are you? I'm doing good. Can you hear me? Absolutely. What's up? So I wanted to know if I can keep using my credit card. And I know you're probably going to say no, but I'm going to try anyway. You're right. No. Do your convincing, Bo. Give it your best shot, Bo. Mm-hmm.

All right. So this is a unique situation. I've never heard it on your show and I've been only listening for like five months. Okay. So I have one credit card. Um, I have a medical condition and my medication is insanely expensive and, uh, I can't afford it until I hit my deductible, which my insurance will cover, but my deductible is $13,000. And so the pharmaceutical company that makes it,

will reimburse me for it and i've been doing this for two years and so i use the credit card and i get cash back for the and then they reimburse me in a few days so is that something that i would keep it for why don't you just pay cash why don't you pay cash i can why i have but it's really expensive oh good we'll pay cash

And then you still get reimbursed. It's really expensive either way, dude. You're out the money either way, right? Yeah, but I get the money back from the pharmaceutical company. Okay, and so you use your cash, and then you get your cash right back. I can do that, but I get another $300. Oh, whoop-dee-doop-dee. Okay. You're going to sell your financial soul for $300? Well, it's... I never met a millionaire who said, you know, Dave, I made all my money on my airline miles.

It's not airline miles. I know. It's $300. $300 has never created a millionaire. Okay. It's biscuit money. I agree. I just don't make a lot of money, so it's really... Well, then that's a... If $300 is a lot of money, then that's a different problem, isn't it? You have an income problem then. Yeah. I don't think I'm going to make more money. Why? It's not because I'm lazy. I'm not really worth a lot of money. Why? Society would say I lack...

intelligence or education they're different you don't like intelligence you've carried on a very clear conversation in a high pressure situation you don't like and lack intelligence you've done a good job in this banter that we've had here which was kind of fun so you're not lacking in intelligence you might not have education that doesn't mean you're not able to make a living what do you do what do you make i make uh 26 35 an hour okay that's not super bad

You were getting 40 hours? No, I worked, well, it varies, but seasonally, I worked between 30 and 45 hours a week. It depends on what time of year. What do you do? It's kind of, I work for a distribution center. I'm, I operate, the simplest way I could say it is I manage robots. Okay, are you 24? Are you 24? No, I'm 42. I'm sorry?

42. 42. Okay. So here's the deal. What I would do if I were you is I would say, hey, I can be anything I want to be. What are the steps to being one of those? And I could make twice as much money being one of those. And I want to go start working towards being one of those. And it could be an apprentice program.

It could be a certification program. It could be a couple of classes at the local community college. I don't know. But you're capable of doing all of those things. And so your issue is that you need to increase your income and have some career goals. We'll help you with that.

I'm going to give you Ken Coleman's book, Find the Work You're Wired to Do. I want to get the title right, so I turned around and looked at it. And it's got in it the Get Clear Assessment. I don't have to look at it because we've had over 100,000 people take this assessment. And it'll help you get clear on what your skills are. And I want you to go work on that, Bo, to where $300, to where you're no longer in a place where you think $300 changes your life. Don't be in a place where you think $300 changes your life. You want to be in a better place than that.

And then you don't fall into the traps of these stinking banks and these stinking credit card companies. And you get sucked in thinking they're actually there to help you. They're not. So problem solved. Hang on. We'll give that to you as our gift. This is The Ramsey Show.

Do you ever feel like you're finally making progress towards your goals only to get quickly distracted by something else in your feed? Well, that's why we created the Ramsey Network app, your single source for content that keeps you motivated. The Ramsey Network app is designed to keep you laser focused on reaching your goals. Loaded with over 700

thousand hours of Ramsey shows, this free app is the best place for uninterrupted content and no distractions. Plus, you can search specific questions to get more personalized content in seconds.

So for the days you need some extra motivation, you'll have proven advice at your fingertips. It's time to get serious about your goals and shut out the distractions for good. Simply search Ramsey Network in the App Store or Google Play. If you're listening on a podcast, just click the link in the show notes to download our free Ramsey Network app today.

Live from the headquarters of Ramsey Solutions, it's The Ramsey Show, where we help people build wealth, do work that they love, and create actual amazing relationships.

I'm Dave Ramsey, your host, Rachel Cruz, Ramsey Personality No. 1 bestselling author, and my daughter is my co-host today. This is a Baby Steps Millionaire Theme Hour. If you are a millionaire, we want to talk to you and learn about you so that other people who aren't yet a millionaire can hear what it sounds like to be one and how to get there. Let me help you with what a millionaire is. Some people don't know.

Some people are confused. It is not an income of a million dollars a year. You can have a million dollar a year income and still not be a millionaire. It's possible. Not probable, but it's possible. A millionaire, by definition, is an accounting term. It is a simple math formula. What you own...

minus what you owe equals your net worth. Your assets minus your liabilities equals your net worth. When your net worth is greater than $1 million, you are, by definition, a millionaire. It's not a feeling. Well, no one should have wealth. It's not a moral construct. It's a math thing. Well, $1 million isn't enough. Well, maybe we can talk about that, but you're still a millionaire if you have a $1 million net worth.

Well, it's all in his house. It doesn't matter. A house is an asset. It's all in cash. Doesn't matter. Cash is an asset. Well, I don't understand. I don't care if you understand. This is what it is, period. There's only one definition. People say net worth millionaire. That's a redundant term. That's like saying millionaire, millionaire.

Because all millionaires are net worth millionaires. It is the only kind of millionaire there is. There's not another kind, so you don't have to put an adjective in front of it. It's not net worth millionaire. It's just millionaire. And the data tells us that most millionaires that become millionaires are boring. They simply invest money in their 401k out of their paycheck, and they pay off their house. That's what most of them do.

That's the first one to five million dollars. It's just the old. As a matter of fact, James, our producer, found the video of an actual millionaire versus the typical American. Fire that up and let the people on YouTube see it. And Rachel and I will do a play by play of what a real millionaire looks like versus most people. Here we go. You ready? It's the tortoise versus the hare. The classic. You know the story. The hare is always distracted looking at people.

Things they can't afford. Buying things with money they don't have to impress people they don't even really like. They have a great gun collection, a great purse collection, and cars that they can't afford parked in front of a cheap house.

Meanwhile, the tortoise just keeps on walking. This is a live video of an actual tortoise. This is a tortoise actually winning the race, beating the hare. It's actually some of our YouTube geniuses here. It's actually a really, yeah. It's not bad. It's a big old tortoise. It's a huge tortoise and it doesn't stop. And the pace is consistent. You see, he just kept the same pace, just kept going. And that hare was kind of back and forth, looking up, looking around. And that's it. I'm like, it is. And it's boring. All financially ADD. It's not flashy.

I mean, it's, yeah, it's not the cool, like, this new thing. We could actually name the hare Bitcoin. Oh, my gosh. And we could name the tortoise millionaire. There you go. Right? Because that's what happens. You're just distracted. You're looking for a quick, easy way. And all the people cheering for you, they're not helping because you're still just going to be your own worst enemy. All the way around. Yeah. Yeah.

And by the way, I was a hair in my 20s and I lost everything and went broke. And so I have adopted the tortoise personality since then and the tortoise haircut. So I'm full on tortoise at this point. I'm big time into tortoises. So because I found what works and I'm sticking with it. So we're talking to real millionaires, not your broke brother-in-law with an opinion. Alex is in Charlottesville, Virginia. Alex, what's your net worth?

About $1.5 to $1.6 million. Cool. Give me a little breakdown by category. How much in-house and 401k and so forth?

My house is worth $225,000 or so, best estimate. 401k, I've got $300,000 in there. I've got almost $200,000 in a Roth IRA. I've got a SEP IRA, which has about $65,000, $70,000 in it. I've got...

You know, a traditional IRA, a liquid investment account. I also recently became an accredited investor. So I've got, oh God, probably $300,000, $350,000 in there. And then I also own my own business. And the only thing I really count towards my net worth is the value of that building, which is probably $350,000 to $400,000.

That's the building that that's in. Okay. How old are you? By the way. How old are you? 42. 42. How much of this did you inherit? I didn't inherit anything. Zero. Okay. And your best year of income since you started working and your worst year of income since you started working? My best year, I probably made $280,000 before taxes. My worst year...

Probably in my early 20s, and I think I made $52,000 or $53,000. Okay, cool. What's your career? I own my own business. I'm an electrical engineer, and I make equipment for aircraft. Gotcha. All right. Engineering degree? Yes, electrical engineering. Okay. All right, cool. What was your GPA?

Wasn't very good. 2.8. 2.8. I got out. Thank you, Lordy. Graduated. Thank you, Lordy. That was pretty much it. Yeah. I like it. I like it. Cool. All right. So you're listening. You have listening to us out here, and I promise you with 30 million people out there that we do have this person listening. They're 22 years old, and they're studying electrical engineering. Can they still do this in America today? Oh, absolutely. Absolutely.

In fact, they could probably get ahead of where I am just by being a little more aggressive with their investments. That's the first thing you tell them to keep investing because you've done a great job. You've got lots of 401ks, Roths, SEPs, accredited investors. You paid off your building, and you're not living in a $2 million house. You're living and you make $280,000. I mean, you've really focused on this, done a great job.

Yeah, I don't know what I'm, I probably won't make $280,000 this year, but I'm sure I'll do pretty well. That's okay. Alex, do you have a family? Are you married with kids? I am not married and no children. That's great. I have two dogs. Hey, they count. What's the biggest mistake you've ever made with money? I don't know. It's very hard to say that. I am actually, the best way I can describe my relationship with money is I am terrified of debt.

So, you know, I think the worst decision I ever made was loaning money to family. Oh, yeah, because that got into that terror thing and transferred to the family. Wow. Well, congratulations, sir. 42 years old. No inheritance. $1.6 million net worth. Hmm. Something to think about. This is The Ramsey Show.

This show is sponsored by BetterHelp. This is the season for Halloween. It's October, we're wearing costumes and we're wearing masks. So if you haven't started planning your costume yet, get on it. And while you're thinking about it, I want you to be honest. A lot of us hide ourselves. We hide our true selves behind costumes and masks all the time. We do this at work, we do this around our friends, we do this around our families.

We even do this when we look at ourselves in the mirror. I know because I've been there multiple times in my life and it's the worst. If you feel like you're stuck hiding behind masks and costumes all the time, if you find yourself hiding from your true self, I want you to consider talking with a therapist. Therapy is a place where you can be honest, where you can talk to somebody else and reflect and learn and you can accept all the parts of yourself over time and start living an authentic life.

Masks and costumes should be for Halloween parties, not for our emotions and our true selves. And if you're considering therapy, try calling my friends at BetterHelp. BetterHelp is 100% online therapy. You can talk with your therapist anywhere so it's convenient for you and your schedule.

Just fill out a short online survey and you'll be matched with a licensed therapist. Plus, you can switch therapist at any time for no additional cost. Take off the costumes and take off the mask with BetterHelp. Visit BetterHelp.com slash Deloney to get 10% off your first month. That's BetterHelp.com slash Deloney.

Folks, changing your family tree takes more than rice and beans and side hustles. It's also about transferring the big financial risks off your family by having the right kinds of coverage in place. That's why my team created the Coverage Trader.

checkup quiz. It only takes about five minutes to find out what types of insurance you need and don't need to protect your finances. Make this quiz one of your regular checkups starting right now at ramseysolutions.com slash checkup. That's ramseysolutions.com slash checkup.

It's a Baby Steps Millionaires Theme Hour. We're talking to real millionaires about what their life looks like, how they did it. So if you're not one, you can learn how. That's the purpose. And can it still be done in America? There's a lot of lies that are believed about millionaires. One lie is that you must be doing something famous to be a millionaire, like a pro sports figure, a rock star, a country music star, a...

Hollywood actor. Less than 1% of America's millionaires are people that you know who they are. Less than 1%. Most of them are like people sitting in my lobby right now. And they all look just like other people. And they're not on the TV screen. And they're not on the basketball court.

and so on. And so, as a matter of fact, a lot of the people that are like that aren't millionaires because they're so horrible at handling money. And so it's very interesting. But you don't have to be famous to be a millionaire. That's mythology. It's less than 1%. It's a method. It is a method of getting there, but it's not the typical method statistically. John's in New York City. John, what's your net worth?

How you doing, Dave? Thanks for having me on. My net worth is $1.65 million. Cool. Give me a little breakdown by category. Sure. So I have about $125,000 in high-yield savings. I have $340,000 in a brokerage account, and the rest is in IRA and mutual funds, ETFs, you know, broken up, kind of diversified. Okay. You don't own any real estate?

Well, actually, I have about 350. I have a house and have about 350K in equity in it right now, which I kind of didn't include, which I should have. Yeah, that's a $2 million net worth then. Okay. All right. Very cool. Doing better than you thought you were, John, before you called. Got to raise while you're on the phone. That's pretty good. How old are you? 64. 64. And how much of this 1.6 or 2 million did you inherit?

I recently my dad passed this past March so I inherited 400k from him so at about 1.25 before he passed okay so you were already a millionaire before you got an inheritance yes so it's fair to say that you did not become a millionaire but it was enhanced but you did not become a millionaire with because of an inheritance correct

That's correct. Okay. All right. Just making sure I get my story exactly straight. So your best year working income and your worst year working income? My worst year is when I first got out of college. I probably made only about $30,000. And my best year is about $190,000. Okay. What was your career or is your career? I was in IT as I did a whole bunch of different things, technician, manager, director, sales engineer. So I ran the gamut. That's great. Are you retired now, John?

Yes. Wonderful. Four-year degree? Yeah, I have a four-year degree. In what? My degree is actually in criminal justice. Okay. All right. And then you got into IT. And your GPA in criminal justice was what? 3.8. 3.8. All right. Very cool. Very cool. All right. I'm 64. You're 64. So can people still do this today?

Oh, absolutely. I wouldn't say it's easy, but you just need to be disciplined. And the earlier you start, the easier it gets. It's simple, but it's not easy. Right. That's what I always think of. Yeah, good. Very cool. What's the worst thing you ever did with money? What's your biggest mistake?

My biggest mistake, actually, I was doing pretty good in my career, and I always lived below my means. At one point, I bought a boat. Ah, the two greatest days in a man's life, when he buys a boat and when he sells it.

Yep. That's it. So why was it a mistake? Because you went into debt for it or you just wouldn't use it? What was the mistake of the boat? Well, I think the biggest thing is I went into debt for it, which was a huge mistake. But, you know, luckily, you know, I made enough money along the way that it really didn't impact me. So, you know, at the end of the day, you know,

myself and my family we enjoyed we have a lot of great memories on a boat so yes it's good and it didn't sink him but a bum there you go i've been waiting for that one day you knew that was coming right walking dad joke okay the um the definition of a dad joke so yeah very cool very cool all right uh what what do you drive

I actually drive today. I drive actually a BMW 330, but I have a caveat about that. I will never buy one new. I bought a 2018 as a three-year lease return because I know I've had more than one BMW. All the depreciation is up front. So you buy a lease return, that's 50% depreciation. I bought a really nice car with 35,000 miles on it for $23,000. Yeah, and that's a $50,000 car.

Yep. Yeah. Okay. Good for you. Well done. Love it. Love it. Well done, sir. Congratulations. Proud of you. Mike is in Buffalo, New York. Mike, your net worth is what? About $4.5 million. Good for you. I like it. And give me a little breakdown by category on that, sir. I paid a house off when I was 50. It's worth about $600,000, $610,000 today.

Uh, between Schwab and fidelity, I have a financial planner that manages about 45% of our net worth about 2.5 million. My wife has about seven 50 in her 401k. Uh,

A small annuity, a very low-cost one, 300 grand in that, and gold and silver physical coins, about $33,000. Then your favorite, I own some cryptocurrency and some altcoins. It's only 1% or 2% of my net worth. So it's like $45,000 worth.

uh eighty thousand eighty point okay all right eighty yeah okay cool and then cash eighty five grand and then another sixty thousand sitting around in uh stock from the company that i used to work for that i retired last june of 23. cool what was your career i was in sales oh cool and uh how old are you 63 63 and how much of this did you inherit

About 810,000. So we had over 3 million. Well, we didn't have over 3 million at the time. We inherited about a year ago. But we have 3 million of the 3.9 million is ours. And I came from parents that were frugal times 10. So you were already a millionaire before you got an inheritance. That's correct. You were a 3 millionaire before you got an inheritance.

That's correct. I hit my first million about 11 years ago, and you take out the $600,000, $700,000 that I added to it in those years working post that, and we basically took the portfolio up two and a half times. Gotcha. What's your degree in? Just business. Business management. Okay. And your GPA, do you remember it?

Yeah, I was, you know, I was working 30, 35 hours a week at a restaurant. It was about 3.1, 3.2. Good for you. Okay, cool. All right. We're about the same age. Do you think Americans can still do this today? You think a guy in sales can go out there and end up with $5 million net worth by the time he's 63? Yeah.

this is what, this is what sets me on fire is today. You have more opportunities than ever in the eighties. If you wanted to buy a hundred, get a minimum of a hundred shares, right? I'll make this short and sweet. A hundred shares would cost you a couple hundred dollars plus a hundred shares. So if you were buying something for 50 bucks, you had to have $5,200 in the nineties.

It was about $40 trading cost with 100 share minimum. In about 2011, 2012, the market makers, the Schwab's and the Fidelity's free trading, no minimums, fractional share. So if you're a guy struggling, the end of the month, you got 76 bucks. I'm being facetious here. You could go in and buy whatever.

say eli lillia selling at 109 you could buy a fractional share at no cost there is no other generation that has had as many opportunities as these kids say there's absolutely no reason why you shouldn't be a millionaire by the time you're 50 absolutely no reason at all you heard it from mike there you go i'm sold mike i'm ready i'm ready i that's just the truth yeah it's just the way it is what do you drive

I drive a Tundra. Me and my wife bought two new cars, and we said, hey, we've arrived. You've arrived. You drive a Toyota. Yeah, I drive a Toyota. But, you know, Dave, I will drive this car for probably 12, 15 years. I wasn't shaming you. I'm happy for you. The woman to my right, her husband drives it. My son-in-law drives a Tundra. He loves it. I love it. It's a great truck. Yep.

Yeah, I only drive 7,000 plus miles a year, so it's going to take a while. You don't have to justify it. I think you're okay. I think you're going to be okay. Enjoy it. You did okay, Mike. You did good, man. The number of people that drive a stinking Toyota that have million-dollar net worths, they're everywhere. A Toyota. This is the Ramsey Show.

I know you work hard for your money, and the key to keeping more of it in your pocket is by making a plan for your spending with a budget. And EveryDollar is the budgeting app that I use personally because it's perfect for looking every dollar you make in its little president face and telling it exactly where you want it to go, just like you told that guy in traffic exactly where you wanted him to go. And even better, EveryDollar walks you through the entire budgeting journey so you always know your next right step.

Download every dollar for free in the App Store or Google Play today. This is a Baby Steps Millionaires theme hour. If you are on Baby Step 4 retirement, you're out of debt, you have your emergency fund, or beyond, five is kids college, six is pay off the house, seven is you've done it all, you're debt free and building wealth and outrageously generous. If you're anywhere in those, we are doing a cruise, the Live Like No One Else cruise.

You should not go on this cruise if you're still in debt and getting out. That's not what we want you to do. We want you to get out of debt first. But if you're doing this, Holland Americans is the line that we're on. It's fabulous. It's one of their newer ships. It's all-inclusive, of course, and it's all the Ramsey personalities. We're each going to be doing sessions in the evenings. We've also got Manit Chauhan from the Food Channel with us, Stephen Curtis Chapman, Dina Carter, famous country music star, will be doing sessions.

shows with us as well and so we will be the entertainment we will be on the ship the entire week from march 22 through 29 this coming spring there are we're 97 sold out so we probably should just quit doing these ads actually but anyway we're going to keep doing them comedian trey kennedy is going to be with us as well

He has made a career out of making fun of me. And so it's going to be really funny and a lot of fun. So looking forward to seeing Trey so I can choke him. No, I'm kidding. It's going to be fun. RamseySolutions.com slash cruise and get your cabin reserved before they're all gone because they're just about all gone. Ted is with us in Philadelphia. Ted, what's your net worth?

Oh, good afternoon, Ted. I'm about 2.26. Wow. Very cool. All right. And a little breakdown by category. Oh, 700,000 in a 401k, 300,000 in cash. And then the rest in some, you know, stocks and bonds. Okay. No real estate?

A home that I've been in for a long time. We have a value of about 1.3 on the home. Outstanding order, did you, about 250? And I know you don't like that, but I'm at 2.65, and I can pay for that out of an investment account that's generating enough to pay for that. So I don't really feel that...

Okay, so I'm not arguing with you. I'm just trying to find out where you are. Okay, so you have a house that has equity in it of how much? About a million. About a million. Of your 2.26, a million is in your house? That's correct. Okay, that's what I wanted. All right, a million at home. Okay, cool. All right, and how much of all this did you inherit? Not a dollar. Not a zero. How old are you? 58. 58. What was your career?

I did a lot of consulting. I'm like an operational consultant. I can look at operational efficiencies and statistical analysis of financial statements to find inefficiencies. Gotcha. Business degree? Business degree, yes. GPA? 3.8. All right. Very cool. What do you drive?

Well, I drive a luxury SUV, but certainly not one that I bought new. Now, I bought my SUV three years old, about three years ago, and I still have it. Very cool. What kind of luxury? What is it? It's a Porsche Cayenne. Oh, those are nice. Very cool. Good for you. Good. Well, you should. I'm a bit of an on-move enthusiast. Yeah, well, I mean, you got $2 million worth. You ought to drive a Porsche. That's pretty good. I like it. All right. Good, good. Can this still be done today?

Well, I think if you're deliberate and methodical, it can. And what I've said to my kids is as you enter the corporate world and you start to work with these corporations, anything that they're willing to give you, you need to take.

If they're going to match your 401k, you take it. If you can buy stock at a discount, you take it. And it's not about how much you're going to make. It's about how much can you keep. And the more they give and the more you make doesn't mean it's the more you spend. It's the more you can keep. And I think if you follow that and you stay true to that, then certainly. So like we opened up, you're more of the tortoise than the hare then? Yeah.

Well, yeah, I think so. I would have to say yes, that's true. Well, he wins the race. It's a good thing. Well, even at home now, you know, my wife and I are in, you know, we built the home new back in the mid-90s. It was a struggle for us to get there. And, you know, here we are 30 plus years later still in that home. Yeah.

So I'm curious, Ted, and even Dave, you can chime into this, you know, to reach a status like a millionaire status. I mean, it's it's awesome. It's unbelievable. People listening are like, gosh, I wish, you know, that'd be nice to get there. So what does that give you when you say, hey, I'm a millionaire for you? What is the what is the benefits versus, you know, obviously just the title is great, but

What does it give you in the quality of your life? Is it peace? Is it opportunity? Is it memories with family? Like, what is this doing for you, Ted?

Well, you know, I can come full circle with that because to me it's a sense of freedom. So I had been self-employed for the longest time and my wife was fortunate with her career where she had some flexibilities as well. So, you know, our give back was a lot of volunteering. You know, we were the coaches. We were the mystery readers in the kids' classrooms. We were the ones running the snack bar. You know, we were the ones volunteering for the cancer functions. And I think now as we've

come into this, you know, the volunteering now has changed into the ability to start to make monetary differences. You know, as our time becomes our asset that we want to keep now, we're willing to provide a little more funding than we could have before. So it's really that sense of freedom and the ability to contribute into the community. Right.

I love that. Well done, hero. So good. Very well done. Proud of you, man. Congratulations. Very, very cool. Thanks for sharing your story. Julie is with us in Houston. Julie, what's your net worth? One million. Very good. And give me a little breakdown on that. It's 500 in mutual funds. My house is worth about 350. It's paid off. And the rest is liquid and a classic car. Okay, cool. And how old are you?

I'm 39 and my husband's 40. Excellent. How much of this did you inherit? $10,000. Okay. So you did not become a millionaire mathematically from that. Okay. All right. Good. Good. And what's your best year working income, your worst year working income? Well, my husband,

So I'm a stay-at-home mom, and I've been at home for 10 years, and my husband has only been making six figures the past two years. And the job he's at currently, like he's been there our whole marriage. What's he do? What's he do? He's a field service manager, and...

And he's been there 13 years, and he started at $30,000 with hard work and raises and promotions. He's now at $130,000. I quit my job when we decided to have kids, and he was only making $40,000. But we always lived off of one income because we knew that our goal was to have me at home with our kids. Field service engineer in what? A field service manager. In what? Um...

Like UPSs. Okay. All right. Cool. All right. Good. And does he have a four-year degree or do you? Yes. Yes, we both do. And what? And he's actually the first one in his family to graduate college. So I'm proud of him. That's awesome. What's his degree in? Business management. Got it. He had a 3.0 and I had a 3.4 in general banking. Ah, he married a smart woman. Okay. Very cool. So what do you drive?

A Toyota 4Runner. Of course you do. Okay. Very cool. I love it. Congratulations, millionaire. Very, very proud of you. Folks, here's the thing. You've heard the lie. It's all over the place that all wealth is inherited in America today. We did the largest study of millionaires ever done in North America, 10,167 of them.

in detail, airtight research technique, had an outside research firm look over our shoulder because we knew some of the left-wing nut jobs would not like the conclusions. So this data is what is known as fact. If you disagree with this, you're what's known as wrong. 89% of America's millionaires are not millionaires because of inheritance.

Some of them, like these guys, got some after they were millionaires. Some of them got a very small inheritance, like this last one, and most of them got zero. 89%. Nine out of... That should give you hope. That means you can do it. Nine out of ten millionaires in America did it without an inheritance. This is the Ramsey Show.

Hey guys, Dave Ramsey here, and I got a big announcement. I'm coming to a city near you live on the Money and Relationships Tour with Dr. John Deloney. This is the most interactive event we've ever done. You get to decide what we talk about. You do not want to miss this. We'll be coming to Louisville, Durham, Atlanta.

Phoenix, Fort Worth, and Kansas City in April and May of 2025. Get your tickets and more information at ramseysolutions.com slash tour. Thank you for joining us, America. This is a Baby Steps Millionaires theme hour. We're so glad you are with us. It's important to know that wealth in America today is not coming from inheritance. It's not coming from being famous.

It is not coming from a 4.2 GPA. Not a bad thing to be that smart, but most of us aren't that smart. And you do need some gray matter. A 1.6 probably won't cut it. You're probably not going to get there. If you graduated with a degree in beer pong, you might make it, but I doubt it. So what are we trying to do here? We're trying to say there are some uses for

out there. There are some things that people believe if you get a high GPA and you go to an expensive college that is famous, that that's going to make you a millionaire. There's no data to support that. Going to a good school, getting a good degree that's very usable in the marketplace, and getting a reasonable GPA is typically around a 3.0. That's what we find is an indicator that you're going to be there. And I'm not telling you to goof off. I mean, if you can get a 3.4, go get it. A 3.8, that's fine. Go get it. But that doesn't mean

that you're more or less likely, okay? That's not how this works. So the data tells us that, you know, that most of these people do have a four-year degree. There is a correlation there, but they have useful degrees. You know, electrical engineering, business, business, business, criminal justice, didn't use it, became IT, etc.

So, I mean, this is the pattern we see throughout these millionaires that we study. What's the joke that B students, usually A students, work for B students later in life? Actually, it's a joke, but it's also a data-backed thing. It's just the idea of like, yeah, go figure it out. You're okay. Don't stress about, I don't know, every single thing. You're not going to die over this. Oh, and by the way, people don't steal their way into wealth either. You get to go to jail if you do that.

And in today's world, if you're a crook, everybody knows it because everybody tells everybody. There's all kinds of places to prove, you know, put out there, this guy's a crook, this girl's a crook. So this idea that all wealthy people are crooks is absolutely asinine. There's the same percentage or less percentage of crooks among the wealthy than there is among the regular other strata on the socioeconomic ladder. And by the way, all poor people aren't crooks either, but some of them are.

All rich people aren't crooks, but some of them are because there's always a percentage of morons. It's just part of the deal. And it's not going to do with wealth.

Yeah. You know. Yeah. And I think. Matter of fact, integrity is actually an indicator that you're going to become well. And I think a point of this segment, number one, is to prove that you can still win financially today. Right. Like if you put things into place, you can win. And the benefits of winning financially is not that because you have X amount of zeros in your accounts means that your life is suddenly better.

because there are rich, miserable people out there. But it's what you do with that money that creates a life that is full. You can still have a full life and not be a millionaire, right? You can still have joy. And this is not an indicator of any of that. But it is a ability. Our last caller said, and I loved it, where he's like, it's just freedom. You know, like money is a tool to create a life that you love and you have options and you

You have the ability to do things you want to do when you have the monetary means to be able to do it. And if that's a spouse staying at home, like whatever that looks like for you. And so for this, you know, I think that's an important point in it, right? It's not just to become a millionaire because suddenly your life's going to be fixed because it's not. There's a lot of really, you know, people that relationally are not great in their millionaires, you know, and they don't talk to their families. Like it's not an indicator that your life is going to be perfect. No. Matter of fact, what wealth does is it magnifies wealth.

Every area of your life. It magnifies the good and the bad in your life. If there's crazy in your life, you get a lot of crazy in your life.

There's chaos in your life. You get a lot of chaos in your life. If there's anger in your life, you're going to get a lot of anger in your life. Money makes you have more of whatever it is. That's right. And so if you're happy and generous, you're going to have a lot of happy and generous. Yep. And the character part of you. So those of you that aren't here yet and say, OK, I want to get there. Who you are in the process is as important, more important, more important as the

the numbers in that account, right? So that's why giving, we always teach in the budget, giving is the very first thing you do, regardless of where you are financially. Like practicing these habits of selflessness and living with an open hand, because as you get more, you're going to become more of that. And that's an indicator of joy and peace in your life when you're a giver. So who you are in this process is really important. And we care about that. It's very, very important. Jesse is in Madison, Wisconsin. Hi, Jesse, what's your net worth?

Good afternoon, Mr. Ramsey, and thank you for you and your team having me on today. I truly appreciate your time. Sure. My net worth is just over $1 million. Good for you. Give me a little breakdown by category.

Sure. So investments between Roth IRAs, 401k, TSP is just over $680,000. That's not including my military or state retirement. 529 of $21,000. We've got about $280,000 of equity into our house. We still have about $217,000 on our mortgage. And then the rest is emergency savings and some assets of about $72,000. Good for you. And how old are you?

37. And how much of this did you inherit? None. Zero. And what do you make a year? This year, about 250K, or 205K. What do you do? I work in cybersecurity in the Army National Guard. Ah, good for you. Okay. All right. Four-year degree?

Yes, actually. And kind of when I was listening to the last caller and when you guys came on, it was a four-year degree but never really used it. And ironically, I recently went back to a technical college for IT and cybersecurity networking. Best investment I ever made. It was cheaper and I was able to cash flow it because of the post-9-11 GI Bill. That's awesome. Big time. So what was your GPA on that? Or is that a past trail? For the bachelor's?

It was a 3.12 for the bachelor's and then I kind of got my act together a little bit more for and I was a little bit wiser but a 3.98 for the tech college. Ah, got it. Okay, so what was your four-year degree in? History. History, very good. Okay, cool. Good for you. You think this can still be done if you're a 37-year-old looking at a 22-year-old out there? Can they still do this in 15 years? Oh, yeah.

Absolutely. The three things that really worked for us were the budget. My family jokes about me nerding out over our budget all the time, but one of the things I wish I would have done a lot earlier in my life because I would have seen not to spend on kind of pointless items that didn't really give me the opportunity down the road, as well as starting to invest earlier. I wish I would have done it even if it was a little bit.

It still would have made, you know, my older self would have thanked my younger self a lot more time in the market. What do you drive?

Oh, a 2021 Toyota Sienna. A Toyota. Of course you do. Good. Gosh. It's the dad van, but I love that thing. I need a sponsor. I've got a honesty. I need a sponsor for this hour, the Toyota. The Toyota hour. Toyota needs to sponsor this hour. It's incredible. A minivan's a great choice, though, Jesse, with little kids. You have a beautiful family. Yeah, we saw them pop up there on the old YouTube, so very cool. Congratulations, brother. Very, very proud of you. Good stuff.

So one of the things that people get confused on is the difference between a millionaire and a billionaire. Millionaires do not have private jets, second homes, and they don't drive $245,000 Lamborghinis. Billionaires do or can. So, you know, sometimes people get really confused. Most millionaires live in a standard house, maybe slightly above average, and they drive a Toyota.

And I think what's hard is I remember when I was a kid, so this was what, 20 years ago, there was a movie called Blank Check on Disney Channel. You probably don't remember it. You're right. But this kid like picks up a blank check and he types in $1 million. I mean, this is in the early 90s. And he buys a castle. He gets a limo with a driver. Like he shows this crazy lifestyle for $1 million. So I do think there's like this nostalgia of like, if I have a million dollars...

You know what I mean? It's like it will do more than it will actually do. I get to buy a castle and have a driver. Yeah, probably not. Not much of a castle, not much of a driver if you did. But it's a great start, and that's why we feature it, because we want to give you guys hope that it is entirely possible. If y'all can find the blank check meme, that's your, Zach, that's the... That's it.

Hey, the next segment will be on the Ramsey Network app. It's a free download. Be sure and check that out on your Apple or Google Play. Hey, you're still here?

What are you doing? You do know that the rest of today's show is playing right now over on the Ramsey Network app, right? All you got to do to finish the episode is search Ramsey Network in the App Store, Google Play Store, or just click the link in the show notes to download the app for free. Yep, you heard me right, for free. Then right there on the home screen, you can watch the rest of today's show. Bada bing, bada boom. All right, I'm getting out of here. Enjoy. We'll see you on the app.