Ok, I’ll play.
I’ve been following Ramsey’s financial advice for 9 years now, the last 7 together with my wife. Not blind, 100% adherence, but in total I’d guess I have about 85-90% fidelity to his teachings. Here are the most beneficial elements, in my experience:
1. Faith in God as the foundation of money management. Tithing is the cornerstone of solid personal finances. Jesus spoke extensively about money. The Bible is full of instructive content on stewardship, generosity, financial priorities, attitudes towards money, investment, debt, wealth management, and other money-related topics. I have personally found the Bible’s teachings on finances to be superior to other sources.
Obviously the 21st century has some new and different financial considerations that did not exist in antiquity. I choose to seek out a variety of financial knowledge from many wise teachers. I interview financially successful persons, and I consume a large quantity of media on money-related subjects in an effort to become proficient in many categories of personal finance such as taxes, investment, budgeting, etc.
2. Generosity. Ramsey asks what kind of person do you want to be - generous, or stingy? If you want to be generous, you become that way by giving freely and cheerfully. It doesn’t feel too great at first, but after pouring out generously over years the internal reward of blessing others, organizations and causes is worth everything given and more.
3. Collaboration with my partner. Using Ramsey’s Every Dollar budgeting software provides the structure for my wife and I to work together towards common financial goals, and have clear communication. It strengthens our relationship and builds trust. We both know where 100% of our money goes. A monthly budget meeting and a zero-based budget are key components.
4. Purpose. We happen to life; life does not happen to us. We are in the financial driver’s seat and choose our financial goals, then achieve them. My wife is a full-time homeschool teacher and stay-at-home mother of 4, we own our home outright, we have no debt, and we’re on a great track in saving for retirement and fully funding our children’s higher education. I have a higher-than-average income, but not by a lot - we are solidly middle class. We did not start here, but we knew where we wanted to go, made a plan to get there, and followed it. This was not without bumps and sidetracks either. My own severe mental health problems have challenged us greatly, and pushed us to the edge of what our relationship could handle many times. We adopted 3 kids along the way, two of whom have severe developmental disabilities. Having a sufficient emergency fund enables us to overcome hurdles without getting derailed or going back into debt.
5. Boundaries. Having clear expectations and what is ours, and what is mine. Also, healthy financial boundaries with friends and extended family.
6. Legacy. Being able to pass along a solid financial foundation to our children as they transition into adulthood. This is primarily about values, and financial literacy. We’re not handing out silver spoons to deprive them the opportunity to learn to stand in their own two feet.
Summary: A lot of people get hung up on Ramsey’s teachings on debt, investment, and home-buying. It’s good to be critical. Those topics are also easy targets and make it easy to overlook some of the more foundational elements of the Ramsey way, described above. I’m not ignorant of the math problems with his treatment of the subjects in this paragraph, as described elsewhere in this thread, and on past threads. I’ll do my best to refrain criticism from others who take a more nuanced approach to these subjects, because as
@VikingsGuy points out,
responsible debt-leveraging is a key component to modern life, as well as business, government, etc.
