The Ramsey Show - App - Maximize Your Role in Order to Get Promoted (Hour 2)

Episode Date: July 30, 2020

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🎵 Live from the headquarters of Ramsey Solutions, broadcasting from the Dollar Car Rental Studio, this is the Dave Ramsey Show, where America hangs out to have a conversation about your life and your money. I'm Chris Hogan, and co-hosting with me this hour is Ken Coleman, and we are excited to be with you. You've got two Ramsey personalities in one location with a whole lot of opinions and the ability to give guidance. So what we need are people to talk to. So, what I want you to do,

pick up the phone, call at 888-825-5225. Again, that's 888-825-5225. I have given Coleman a lot of coffee. He has a lot of caffeine. He's wide awake and he's ready. That's just pure passion, folks. That's enthusiasm, man.

Is that what that is? Two hours of the Ken Coleman Show before we got over here. So I'm warmed up, ready to go. We love what we do. Yes, we do. We know why we do it. And you are the reason why we do it. So let's go.

I just feel like, Chris, we got some people who are listening right now. They're going, you know what? I've been listening to Dave for a long time. I've been listening to you guys on with Dave and all the other Angie personalities. And there's a reason I've been listening, but I haven't called it. It's intimidating. It's a little scary. And I just want to talk to that person for a moment.

You're not a prop. We're not here to make an example of you. We're here to guide you because you matter. You have what it takes, and we want to be the person. If it's just today, you needed to talk to one of us, both of us. We're going to be here for you. That's why we do what we do. So call right now, 888-825-5225.

I feel like somebody needs to call that's always been scared to call and step into that fear because on the other side of fear is progress. Oh, I like that. Pick it up. Dial it. Now, we've also told you guys to send us questions all the time. We're always asking you for social media questions. We have some in.

And I'm going to hit Coleman with a question here in just a minute. But I want to let you know you can find us on social media very easily. Ken is at Ken Coleman. You can find him on Twitter, Instagram, all the places there. And, of course, he's got the Ken Coleman Show. So go to KenColeman.com to learn all things Ken Coleman. For me, you can go to ChrisHogan360.com. Learn more about me.

You can find me on social media at ChrisHogan360. So we're going to dive in. I've got a social media question for you, Ken. It says, this is from Howard from Instagram. He goes, what do I need to do if I want to move into a higher position in a company? Maybe a better work ethic or more skills or perhaps a master's degree. What does Howard need to do? Well, that's interesting. I got to tell you, I get distracted by maybe a better work ethic. I want to dive into that. If distracted by maybe a better work ethic.

I want to dive into that. If you're suggesting that you're not working hard enough, then I think we've got a bigger issue. And I just truly wonder if that's what's going on. But I would tell you this. You better be doing something that is dealing with the now or there is no next. And that is maximizing your role. So let's start with, okay, Howard, you want a higher position in the company. So let's assume that you've identified that higher position.

What is that position? Let's know what it is. All right, let's look at it and go, now, what are the requirements for that position? You've got the inside track because you're in the company. So it's not going to be hard to figure this out. But at that point, once you know what the requirements are, you better be looking at your current position. And in this situation, it is knowing your role. That's very clear what is expected of you in your current role.

Accepting your role. That's an attitude issue. You have an attitude. I'm grateful for this role. And then maximize your role. That's effort. And the fact that you refer to, would it be a better work ethic? I don't think that should be in your question.

And I'm not coming down on how it is. But I am saying if you're throwing that out there, I don't know that you're maximizing. And what I mean by that is, Chris, going above and beyond. Now, here at Ramsey Solutions, we have what we call a key responsibilities area document. And it says this is what we at Ramsey Solutions expect from Ken Coleman. This is what we expect from Chris Hogan. Well, just because it's on paper doesn't mean I can't go above and beyond that. In fact, I should.

And that's how you get promoted, is by going above and beyond. So he better get noticed for really crushing it in his current role. Where he is now. While indicating that I'd like to go to this role. And I like that you said indicating I'm interested in that role. I don't think there's anything wrong with verbalizing it. I don't think there's anything wrong with inquiring about it and be able to get the info.

That's exactly right. You've got to ask. You've got to let people know that you're interested. All right. See, Howard, thank you for reaching out. And you know what? Other people out there, I know you've got questions as well. Find us at RamseyShow, at Ken Coleman, at ChrisHogan360. We'd love to be able to talk to you all right we're going to get to the

phones that's what we do we've got uh jason is on the line in albuquerque jason how are you i'm doing great thanks for having me guys i hope you're having a wonderful day well thank you my friend we are we are we're glad to talk to you what's on your mind buddy well i've been on the program now for uh just a few months, you know, hardcore. I was kind of doing my own thing before that. But I've paid off a little over $9,000 in a few months. All right. A couple of credit cards and the remainder of a student loan.

My question is what comes next. So I have a second mortgage that was a cash-out refinance, and it's got $17,500 on the balance. Okay. And I've also got a 401k loan that's got $15,000 on the balance. I know Baby Steps say to go for the small amount. The question I have, should I do that considering my second mortgage has a balloon payment due October of next year? Okay. So I appreciate you saying that about the balloon payment because that's important information.

What's your household income right now, Jason? I'm single. I make $82,000 a year. $82K. Nice. Okay. So you've paid off $9,000. What happened?

What made you get serious? You know, funny story. I was kind of messing with numbers with retirement with a buddy of mine at work, and we were playing with percentages and this and that and the other, and it was like, man, it would be great if I could throw some more money at it. We just kind of started talking about random solutions, and I started watching. more money at it. We just kind of started talking about brand new solutions, and I started watching,

I started doing it, and I just got hooked. My hair's on fire now. I'm on my way. That's fantastic, man. And I'm going to tell you something. That's the key to people getting to destinations, when you have that kind of mindset. How are things on the job? They're great.

I have found what I'm supposed to do. Alright, what line of work are you in the job? They're great. I have found what I'm supposed to do. Alright, what line of work are you in, buddy? I work at a national research and development laboratory. Okay. Now I gotta go into coach Hogan mode. What'd you do this 401k loan for?

Oh, you know. In my marriage, I was very good at shifting debts from one person to another, making it seem like we had money. Oh, a little three-card Monty. Well, man, when I got divorced, I had about $65,000 in my name to clear up, and I'm down to the last. I'm proud of you, buddy.

So let me ask you, Jason, if you were to follow the baby steps as it is and so let's say we were going to attack the 15 when do you project that you would pay off the 15 the $15,000 for I could have in about 10 months maybe a little shorter depending on my side hustle and the balloon payment goes to what in basically in about a year and a half what does it go to is It's due in fall. Right. So how much would it be due? Oh, I mean, paying only the minimum, probably $16,500.

I mean, it would be... Yeah. I got to tell you, Chris, I think he goes, he's 10 months, he knocks the $15,000. Go ahead and knock the $17,500 out. There's such a small difference. It is. And, you know, here's the reality of this. With the 401k loan, and we'll talk about this more after the break, there's dangers to these people.

You've got to be careful. And we'll talk about this after the break. Stay tuned, my friends. This is The Dave Ramsey Show. families all over the country are discovering a faith-based and budget-friendly way of meeting health care costs whether they're anticipated or completely unexpected. For example, take the Olcheski family from LaGrange, Texas. Jeff and Carice had just celebrated the birth of a new baby boy. Shortly after, they had another expensive medical issue come up. They could have faced a huge financial setback, but thanks to Christian Healthcare Ministries, the Olcheskis were

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I'm Ramsey personality, Kit Coleman, joined in studio by Ramsey personality, Chris Hogan. And we are here for you, taking your phone calls about money, about life, about your job. Are you sick of the 9 to 5, the just dead-end job? Life is too short to work for the weekend. We can talk to you about how to figure out what that dream job is and how you get there. Chris Hogan, going to be answering your money questions, retirement questions, investing questions. We're going to tag-team them together because we enjoy doing that.

888-825-5225 is the number. 888-825-5225. Now, Chris, as we went into the break, this radio thing, you got these limits. Yes. That are defined by commercials. We don't have a choice. So we got to go. That's right.

But we were talking to Jason, a young man. And just a quick recap, because I talked about this as we were going to the break, but we were talking about it during the commercial break, and I want you to clarify some things as to why we say what we say here. So he's in a situation where he has a second mortgage, which has a balloon payment attached to it, and it's due next October. That's right. He owes $17,500 on that. He has a 401k loan of $15,000, and the nature of his question was, I'm all in on Dave's baby step plan.

And so Dave's plan would say, smallest debts to largest. So traditionally, it would go, let's knock the $15,000 out first, the 401k loan. That's right. However, he's got that balloon payment that would have a penalty to it. And so I gave him some advice, and I went to the break. I said, Chris, did I say the right thing? And so it's not a discrepancy, but this is a unique situation. Explain.

Yes, it really is. So whenever you look at and you're dealing with a balloon, essentially what's going to happen is once you get to that maturity date, the full thing is due. And so if you don't have that, then what would happen is you'd have to start back over refinancing. So you're going to have the refinance fees, the points, all the things roll back. So the full 17.5 would be due plus some fees. That's exactly right. So and on the other side of it with a 401k loan, if his job were unstable, he said his situation was stable. If it's unstable and you're going to lose or leave a job, you have around 30 to 90 days before you have to fully pay that back or it's counted as a penalty as well.

So in this scenario, with his job being stable and his home being his largest monetary asset, attacking that second mortgage, that balloon, is going to be the priority to get that out of his life before the due date next October. So in that scenario, you want to understand the full context of what he can do. And now he's freed up his home. Now he can turn his attention to the 401K loan and not borrow anymore. And it's important I did not mention that we asked Jason how soon in his timeline would he pay off the $15,000, which would be the normal baby. And he said 10 months. It would be 10 months. So presumably a year from now, he knocks out the $17,500, which is why we suggested knock out the larger debt in this particular situation because of the balloon.

Because he wouldn't be able to pay off both. No, he can't do both. Right. But he could. It would require some serious cutback and some serious, serious stuff. But going in that route. So, all right, that's good. All right, we've been telling you guys to send us stuff in on social.

And I got a question from Brianna. And Brianna says, my husband is a youth pastor, and I'm a stay-at-home mom of a four-month-old. We have $3,000 in medical debt, $7,000 in car, and $7,000 in credit card debt. I don't see where or how we can start. We have both done Financial Peace University years ago when we were in college, and we're debt-free last fall before losing our jobs at a university, it seems like a hole that we just can't dig out of. Brianna, first and foremost, I want to acknowledge the tension and stress you're feeling in this situation.

You've had some job loss, and now you're a new mom, and you've got some things that are stacked up against you. You've had some unforeseen things come your way, but I want to assure you that the way out is clear. And that's going to be a matter of really getting plugged in and going back to what you know. You said you've been through Financial Peace University before. It's now time to get plugged back in and you guys together locking arms, looking at this situation going, you've got around 17,000 in debt, right? And with a car, you have options of selling medical debt. You're going to pay what you can afford to pay. And we're just walking through this thing. You didn't get into this overnight and it's not going

to go away overnight, but it can go away with the plan. So I want to encourage you young lady to get plugged back in over into Ramsey Plus, where you can see the videos, hear the information, start to get your mojo back, and you and your husband lock arms and look at this and say, for the sake of this four-month-old baby, that you guys are going to clean this mess up in this next year. And I firmly believe that you can do it. Oh, they can do it. $17,000. I don't want to minimize how scary that is to them because to them, that's Mount Everest. It is. But in the grand scheme of things, $17,000, not a lot.

And I just wanted to add, you know, listen, on that medical debt, I've been in a situation where I've had that early on. We had some unforeseen medical bills, and they just stacked up. And I got scared until somebody told me, you know, just call them and talk to them. And we did. And we said, okay, this is what we can do. And they were fine with it. Yes. And it was a small payment until we could snowball that.

That's right. And so you have options there, as you said. And in that car, you've got options. And then, hey, you've got two able-bodied adults. Let's find somebody who will watch that baby for a season. And you go work. And before you know it, $17,000 is a distant memory. So it feels huge.

But I've got to tell you, the biggest part of a lot of this is just to realize there is a way to get out of this. And that's really the emotion she was sharing. We don't know where to start. Can we actually do it? That's right. Can we do it? And I want you to know you can. Now, I know there are people out there that have done it. And they're like, Chris, we dug our way out. We've done stuff. I want you to know right now what you can do, because this year has left a lot of people feeling more scared about money than they've done stuff. I want you to know right now what you can do because this year has left a lot of people feeling more scared about money than they've ever been. All they know is that they never again want to be in this situation and they have no idea, like Brianna, where to

start. Well, that's where you can come in and help as a Financial Peace University coordinator. Coordinators are everyday people like you who walk people through life and help them with our proven plan on how to dump debt, save for emergencies, and build wealth so they never again have to feel that worry. You don't have to be a money expert to be a coordinator. We take care of all of the teaching. Let me say that again. We take care of all of the teaching.

You can even lead a virtual class right from home. And just for leading, we'll give you a free Ramsey Plus membership for an entire year. Did you hear this? So that means you get all of our tools, all of our best content, so you can stay focused on your own goals while helping others. Guys, as a coordinator, you can change someone's life. I'm telling you right now. You can show them the way to take control of their money for good. No more fear, no more stress, no more sleepless nights. I want you to be the one to throw out the lifeline to someone. So to learn more, text LEADFPU. Text the word LEADFPU to 33789. Again, that's LEADFPU, all one word, to 33789. I'm going to tell you something.

You have an opportunity to make a difference. And don't think that you can't help. There's always people that are in need, and we'd love to have you. And so this is a great opportunity for us to plug in and to help many more people, Ken. Let me tell you something, folks. You're thinking, some of you are going, you know what, I'd like to do that. But the problem is, Chris, Ken, I'm just getting myself started in Baby Step 2. I've been a mess. I've done all these dumb things. Let me remind you, the guy's name who's on the building said he has done a lot of dumb things, and that's why we all

exist, because he learned from it. And I'll tell you something else. Chris, and I know you can speak to this, and this is a challenge. Some of you feel like you're disqualified from being a coordinator because you're in a mess right now. Can I tell you something? You're not teaching the class. Dave Ramsey is, Chris Hogan is, Anthony O'Neill, Rachel Cruz, you know, you're just there as the facilitator and the friendly face who presses go on the video, if you will. And I have learned this in my life that my greatest seasons of growth were when I was actually trying to help others. And when you step into this and say, I'm going to be the friendly face, I'm going to be the person who opens up my home or gets a room in

a church or a library or whatever. And I'm going to be the person that stands up the first week and go, Hey, I'm leading this, but I want to be honest with you, we're starting Baby Step 2. This is our situation. We know where you are. We're just in this because we know we need help, and we kind of wanted a community. And let me tell you something. You will have so much more growth and, I think, a greater potential to get through the Baby Steps faster because you said, you know what? I'm going to decide to lead a group. Well, you're not leading other than by example. That's right. I like that, Ken.

And here's the deal. I firmly believe if you've ever walked through a mess, if you've ever walked through a mess, it qualifies you to be a messenger. You've got an opportunity to share it, to help others grow. Reach out that hand. And I'm telling you, some of the coaches, some of the coordinators have helped themselves push faster, further because they're that plugged in. Stay tuned, people.

This is the Dave Ramsey Show. Most people's money problems come from not paying attention. That's why before I spend a dime of my money on something, I do the research and I make sure it's going to live up to what it claims. Recently, I got a great pair of sunglasses from a company called Shady Rays. When you're looking for sunglasses, it feels like your options are limited. Name brand sunglasses cost too much. Shady Rays the best overall value in sunglasses. They also replace your shades with a brand new pair if you lose or break them from day one of your purchase. Plus, they offer an exclusive for Ramsey Show listeners.

Right now, you can grab most polarized pairs for just $28 at ShadyRays.com with the promo code DAVE to get $20 off your first pair of Shady Rays. Hello, everyone. You are listening to The Dave Ramsey Show. Hosting along with me this hour is Ken Coleman. I'm Chris Hogan. We're excited to be with you.

We were talking about the ability to be a Financial Peace University coordinator a little bit earlier, and it gives you a great opportunity to be able to help people. And you can do that, again, by getting serious and plugging in and text the word LEADFPU to 33789. Also, I would be remiss to not talk about our Financial Coach Master Training. This is a group of people that want to be financial coaches. They actually want to work with people one-on-one to help them with their financial situation. I lead that training, and it is all done virtual online. You've got a great opportunity to plug in and just go over to DaveRamsey.com and Financial Coach Master Training, Financial Coaching. You can get more information about how you can become a coach.

People are using that to bring in a source of income, whether they're wanting to do it as a ministry or do it as a business. It's a great opportunity for you to learn more about financial coaching. So DaveRamsey.com, Financial Coaching. All right. We're wanting your questions. There it is. Hold on. Throw that back up, guys.

Those that are watching on YouTube, you'll have an opportunity to be able to see that graphic. But there it is, Financial Coach Master Training, How to Become a Confident Financial Coach. So, again, people, Ken, are always asking about ways they can bring in extra money to find a side hustle. There's opportunities out there, my friend. There's always opportunities. And if you think about our financial coach program, what that's training you to do is start your own business. I mean, that is very much an entrepreneurial venture.

But it's not for the faint of heart. Because I get this call a lot, because the Ramsey Solutions tribe, and I get this call on the Ken Coleman show all the time. Hey, Ken, what do you think about me becoming a financial coach? I said, are you prepared to do it for three to five years? Are you prepared to do it for two years? Because this is not a, hey, I'm a financial coach, and then everybody comes out of the woodwork. You've got to build this one client at a time.

And so understand that when you take on a side hustle like this, whether it be financial coaching or whatever you want to do, you're going to have to have the mindset for the long haul. If I walk out on the streets of Nashville, Chris, with a camera crew and a mic, and I walk around and I said, hey, if I guarantee you that you can get your dream job, are you willing to do whatever it takes? Everybody's going to go, oh, absolutely. But then if I follow it up with a second question and say, are you willing to wait as long as it takes?

Then everybody starts going, oh, wait, wait, wait, how long are we talking about? And so that's the natural human inclination is to want it now and so understand if you're going to start something it's going to take some time you better be committed to waiting not just the working that's a good point and i had someone tell me hogan i want to do what you and coleman do i go are you sure yeah are you sure because i mean see us on the camera, but you're not up at 3.30 in the morning or studying things and, you know, the reps. And, again, you've got to put in the work. Are you willing to introduce a mime at a local festival where 17 people in lawn chairs aren't looking at you, even though they're right in front of you, and the mime leaves you hanging? I have no idea what you're talking about. Are you willing to do that?

That's what I did. I have horrific nightmares right now. My point is you and i have done some things that aren't fun that's oh yes that we yes we have and that's paying the dues that's part of it's part of getting the reps all right we're going to the phones 888-825-5225 again that's 888-825-5225 and we've got kim on the line out in saint. Cloud, Minnesota. Kim, how can Ken and I help you, young lady? Hi, thanks for talking with me today. I have kind of a layered question. First of all, we are on, I believe it's baby step number six, trying to pay our mortgage early. Good for you. Thank you.

We have almost enough in savings to completely pay it off. However, that will wipe us out of savings. So we're kind of wondering, do we do that? Do we throw it all at that? And then we have that, you know, monthly that we wouldn't pay in mortgage to put back in savings and start building that up again. Or does it pay to throw a large chunk at that? Is that, you know, the other part of this is with COVID, and I don't know if it had to do with the furlough, I have developed quite a desire to stay home with our kids. So I'm not sure on our timing. I guess I'm just looking for any advice or direction. How much money did you make prior to being furloughed?

I make about, I think last year, $50,000. My husband makes about three times that much. So I'm a small amount in our income. And you're currently still furloughed? I'm not anymore, no. You're not, so you're back. Okay, gotcha. I'm back all right so uh your desire if money weren't an object at all which feels like it's really not for you

uh but you would just love to be home full time that's what your heart's just screaming at you correct that's exactly it i think it's a god thing i have never felt this way before, but I am just strongly feeling that. If you were to walk home today and not earn another nickel, how much longer before you guys would pay off the house if you didn't throw a lump sum at it? In other words, if it was just your husband's income, how long would it take to pay off the house? Yeah. We have been in our home for about seven years. We do unfortunately have a 30-year mortgage, but we've been paying extra from the beginning. No, I understand. But how long, what would the payoff be if you went home today and it was just your husband's income? Forget putting all the savings on it, just normal mortgage payment.

How long before you pay it off? I honestly don't even know. He would know that, but I think we have just over $100,000 left. Okay. Tell me this, Kim. How much do you have in the bank right now in savings? About $100,000. Okay.

When did you start saving that up? When much of, when did you all start saving? Let me ask you that. You know, little by little, and all of a sudden, as my husband started making more, we still lived off. I mean, we've been following you guys, your principles to a T. So we've just kind of been snowballing. We have, you know, the investments going. Our kids' college. Okay.

And I guess anything extra we just keep putting in savings, and all of a sudden we thought, well, we have a lot in there. How much of that is your emergency fund? I think about $30,000 of it. Okay. And that's overkill. That's over six months. I'm with you. But to be cautious.

And you owe how much on the mortgage right now? I think just over $100,000. Okay, so it wouldn't be that you would pull it all out, but what you could do is you could get down to the $30,000 in your six-month emergency fund. Okay, keep the $30,000 in there. You could stroke a check for $70,000 and throw it at this mortgage. And that does help, right? That cuts a ton off of interest.

It is going to make a massive chunk toward it. But the bottom line is you guys, you could call and get a 30-day payoff on the house, just for example, just to find out if you were to write a check right now, what would be the payoff on this? Now, what you're also going to find out is if you all signed up for any kind of prepayment penalty on the mortgage. Most people aren't aware of that when they first sign up. So call your mortgage company. And I'm going to let Ken speak to the stay-at-home part.

Call your mortgage company. Get a 30-day payoff just so you get a feel for it. Go ahead. You and your husband sit down and talk about it. Write a $70,000 check over from savings into that, send that towards your mortgage. So now you're down to around 30, $35,000 balance on there. Okay. And so I don't think that there's any problem. No, I'm not wiping out the entire savings. I'm you see what I'm doing. We're keeping the six month emergency fund in there. And I don't think there's a problem with

that at all. Yeah, I agree. And I'm guessing that your husband is fine with you coming home, yes or no? Have you had that discussion? Yes, he's all for it. It takes a lot off his plate as well. I think you resign tomorrow. That's what I do. I give him two weeks or whatever you think is the proper amount of notice. I want to give you freedom to do this.

Your heart is— Well, hold on just a minute, Mr. Coleman. No, she wants to go home. Well, she needs to first think about, you sure about this she's positive having an inkling is one thing hold on then stop talking let's ask her are you how sure of you of this are you kim that this is what your heart's telling you to do oh my gosh um i wish i was 100 sure it's just very scary i'm trying to discern. All right.

So here's the deal. Talk with your husband again. When you're having the mortgage conversation, once we get that done, say, hey, babe, are we going to be okay on this? And he's going to say, yes, we are. And you are. And if that's what your heart's telling you, do it. Go home. Your life is going to be immeasurably better.

That house is going to be paid off really soon. You guys are living like no one else, so start living like no one else. Go home, Kim. Go home. This is The Dave Ramsey Show. this is the dave ramsey show i'm ramsey personality and best-selling author ken coleman joined by best-selling author chris hogan and ramsey personality as well we are having a blast as we sit and talk to you, America, about your life, specifically your money, your job, relationships around those decisions, are you in a hole?

Are you stuck? Are you scared? Are you facing some doubt? Well, I'm telling you, clarity is one phone call away. Excuse me, that's my number on the Ken Coleman Show. When you say that many times a day, you've got to be careful when you host the Dave Ramsey Show. I caught myself two digits in. Yeah, you did.

You did a good job. Otherwise, I was going to throw a flag at you. Yeah, well, it's happened before. All right, give them the real number. The Dave Ramsey Show number is 888-825-5225. 888-825-5225. James, our producer, that's why we have show notes to make sure that I look at that

so that I don't go into the Ken Coleman show number. But to be fair, I'm a part of the Ramsey Media Network, so it's all, you know, just got to be careful. Got to be careful. So we got the number. Yeah, we do. Have you ever done that, throwing out the Chris Hogan show number? Nope. You've never done that?

Nope. Well, good on Chris. You're such a good student. I am so jealous. Hey, it's because I look at it before I say it. I want to make sure. And that's what happened right there. It happens.

Hey, listen, if you're out there seriously and you've got a question, we'd love to talk with you. Pick up the phone. Kelly is ready. We're here to talk to you. Find us on social media as well. The social media questions are digging and coming in. We love that. We're going to take a couple here in a little bit.

But first, we're going to get to the phones. We've got Ben. We're going international. We've got Ben on the line. Ben, how can Ken and I help you today? Hi, Ken. Hi, Chris. So I'm a young guy married on the west coast of Canada. What I'm trying to do right now is figure out my plan for the fall, which is looming up pretty quick. Okay. What I'm trying to do right now is figure out my plan for the fall, which is blooming up pretty quick. I'm one year into my undergrad. I worked for a few years before going to university. Finished the one year. My wife is going to school for medicine.

So right now I've been offered a job and I got a job beginning of July. So I've been working full time, making around 53K a year, Canadian, of course. And then I'm trying to figure out now, what does my fall look like when school comes around? I can give you some more numbers if you want, but that's what I'm trying to figure out because I want to balance not going into debt for school. I also want to get an education. I think that there's a lot of value in that. And then of course, I actually really love my job as well. So I'm want to get an education. I think that there's a lot of value in that. And then, of course, I actually really love my job as well. So I'm trying to balance all these things. Hey, let me ask you this.

Are you doing both right now? I'm not. I skipped out the summer term because work is especially crazy during the summer. And then I have the option to stay full-time or part-time over the year. Gotcha. Ben, I want to know, what's the long-term goal for you professionally? Where do you want to be five, 10 years now? What's the dream job? Yeah, it's a good question. So I've been really interested in business development,

leadership coaching, executive consulting, management consulting. But one of the things that I'm doing right now, I'm working directing IT for a company that's involved in academics and conferences and that sort of thing. I'm realizing that mixing management with not only business, but with technology, it's a strong suit for me. That's something I might want to go into more. This job has kind of taught me that and showed me that. All right. Now, I don't want you to hear something that i'm not saying but i am going to ask this might make chris uncomfortable but it'll be good for him will this is it possible that this current job is a better ladder for you and gets you further down the path than you actually going to get the degree well that is the little voice in the back of my head. Okay. What's the little voice saying? I'm trying to figure out.

Yeah. The little voice is saying I'd have to switch my degree to really make it worth it. Right now I'm doing an undergrad in psychology and then I want to go into a master's of management or an MBA, but I want to take it from a psychology, not just a commerce approach. I'm realizing that might not directly serve me as much, especially as I go into more technology. Do you have a ladder? Has this company and the leadership over you had any kind of conversation with you where they've shared a vision of, hey, Ben, if you stay with us and you're doing a great job, you do this, this is what a ladder looks like for you. Has that conversation happened? So this company is a, it's a, like, in management, in terms of management, it's, it's a religious organization and actually has a salary cap. And I'm near that cap. So, so there's,

that's, that's meant to be not the, you know, that's not the motivator. Sure. Yeah. But I'm not necessarily talking about money. I'm saying, is there an opportunity for you to grow in your influence and leadership to where maybe two, three years from now, you springboard from that organization into what you ultimately want to do or getting closer to what you want to do somewhere else? I hear you. I think that what would be most likely is that the company itself will actually grow. They're looking to make new hires. And so something might end up happening where things grow kind of with me as well, alongside me, hierarchical beneath me and so forth.

Well, here's my take. Chris, you jump in. I don't know if you disagree or not. I think it would be fun if you did. If you don't, it's kind of boring, but here's the deal. I think that college is something that you should do if it is the best way or the only way. The best way or the only way to get where you want to go. And I'm not sure you've answered that question. I'll leave that for you to answer yourself because I think you're capable of doing it. If you feel like it is something you should do and it is the best way way then i'm fine with you taking a couple of semesters off or longer and keep working stack the money up college is still going to be there you're not falling behind because you're actually working in the field so in this situation chris

i'm okay with him just pausing college until he gets enough cash and then he goes back there because he's in a really good situation yeah But I don't think he has to go. No, Ben, I don't think you have to go either. I think what this is a matter of you have keyed in on something on the IT side as well as the management and the leadership side that is really untapped. Typically, you'll have people that are in IT and they're good with a computer but necessarily not so good with the people or the business side of it. You worked before going to school, my friend.

So you come at this with a little bit more level of maturity and a little bit more level of clarity in what it is you're trying to do. I don't want you to buy a fake bill of goods, meaning just because you got your undergrad, other doors are going to pave the way and they're just going to naturally open. I firmly believe it is about the people you know and how you treat and how you grow. So it may not be something that you necessarily need to do. However, if you're not clear, I don't think there's anything wrong with you working hard and saving up some money. Maybe you take a semester off.

Maybe you decide to go in and go the Sigma Six Sigma or another level of that on the computer side as opposed to just undergrad. But I want you to be intentional about where Coleman was asked you of where it is you want to be in five to ten years. And that's something to sit down and really think about because that's out there a little bit, buddy. And I want you to have the audaciousness, the audacity to dream big and then figure out, re-engineer it and go, what do you say, Ken? Who do I need to meet? Where do I need to be? Talk to me, baby.

Let it out. Here's what he said. His dream is to be in business development for himself, essentially, consulting for organizations. And so in this technology leadership role that he's in, he's melding two things that he said. It turns out that this combination of being in technology and also in management is something that I'm really good at. And you can also hear his voice change. The pulse went up. And he enjoys it. So here's what I'm

looking at for Ben and anybody else that's in this situation. Does this experience in the real world advance his growth and ultimately advance the plan more so than college? In that situation, take it. But don't feel the stigma like, oh, I'm a college dropout. But here's the deal. If he wants to go to college, it's going to be there. So that's really where you called in.

It was like, okay, I don't have the money right now. So I would tell you, man, you're successfully employed right now. You're growing. You're getting great experience, and you're making money. Stack the money. Tell college, pause. And if you decide to go back to college, it's still going to be there. So you shouldn't feel any pressure.

And that was the point of your call. No pressure, man. You've got some wonderful options ahead of you, and you've got a wonderful future ahead of you. I think you've got a great head on your shoulders, and you know what you want to do. And see, that's a big deal. That's a big advantage. So really proud of him.

And I want you to remain allergic to debt. That's the most important thing, Ben. I don't want you to take on student loan debt to think you're going to fast-forward anything. Well, listen, I want to thank all of you for tuning in. I want to thank all the callers for taking the time to call in. I want to thank producer James Childs, associate producer Kelly Daniel for helping to make this show happen. And Ken, I'm even going to thank you for being here. I feel so warm right now.

Well, you should. So very sincere. I'm going to hug you at the break. Oh, boy. This has been the Dave Ramsey Show. This episode is over, but if you heard about an event, product, or service and didn't have a chance to write it down, don't worry. We list everything you've heard about during this episode in the podcast show notes or head to DaveRamsey.com. Thanks for listening.