The Ramsey Show - App - My Boss Doesn’t Want Me Working 2 Jobs

Episode Date: March 28, 2022

Ken Coleman & George Kamel discuss: Preparing to go back to school, Paying for business expenses, Should you sell the house and move? Working multiple jobs. Want a plan for your money? Find out where to start: https://bit.ly/3nInETX Listen to all The Ramsey Network podcasts: https://bit.ly/3GxiXm6

🎵 Live from the headquarters of Ramsey Solutions, this is The Ramsey Show. It's where we help you live your best life by being healthy, relationally successful, professionally, and peacefully financially. 888-825-5225 is the number. I'm Ken Coleman, joined by my co-host and colleague, George Campbell with a K. 888-825-5225 is the number. I'm Ken Coleman, joined by my co-host and colleague, George Campbell with a K. 888-825-5225. We're here to help you with your money questions, your work questions, your relationship questions, just anything around life. What are we doing?

Well, we're going to jump in and we're going to look at practical steps forward so that you can get breakthrough and transformation where you need it. By the way, all of those areas, George, as you know, your work life, your money life, your relationship life, they're all connected. Interwoven. And if you're winning in one and you're just falling apart in two or any combination.

It's a flat tire. You can't drive like that. Yeah, and you need to be winning in all three to really max out and live the life that you're supposed to live and that you can and should live. So that's why we're here. Are you ready to get to the phones? I'm pumped. All right.

Dallas, Texas is where we go. Ann is there. Ann, how can we help? Hi. It's so good to talk to you guys. Good to talk to you. What's up? So my question is, I'm planning a career transition to where I know I'm going to have to get a pay cut for a season. And so I'm just wondering how to best financially prepare for that transition.

What do you, give us a little bit more detail specifically, what are you transitioning to and how big of a pay cut? I'm an occupational therapist. I kind of make pretty much at the top of my career field. Which is what? The transition, I make about $100,000 a year. Okay. And I'm transitioning to go back to school in the near future. So starting here is kind of getting a little bit more experience.

So I know I'm going to take a pay cut to about, I'm anticipating $60,000 a year. Okay, so you're going to be working while you go to school initial transition to get like a certain amount of experience because i'm planning to get my phd um so i need research experience and so that job will give me the research experience which is about a year um and then that's to get me back to going to a phd program which i don't have to pay for but i know it's like a stipend which brings me down to like 30 a year depending on the program and then um i know i'm going to be working because my job i will be able to work while i go to school what are you going into, Ph.D., and what to do what? So that's kind of where I'm still unsure as far as the program,

but definitely going into a neuroscience Ph.D. Okay. All right. Well, you didn't call for that specific issue, so I don't want to take you too far down that path. So if I heard this right, George. Well, I thought about calling to your show. Yeah, you need to. You need to.

Because I want to make sure, even though that Ph.D. is being paid for, I want to make sure that that's the right path. Because we're talking about some serious financial sacrifice. If I heard this right, George, she's making $100,000 now. She's going to take a job that will get her the research experience that's going to put her between $60,000 and $70,000. And then if you get in and you still move forward on the Ph.D. program, then you're going to go all the way down to just living off that stipend. Real quick before I hand you off to George on this, are you in one income? Are you in a relationship, double income?

What's going on? One income, single. I'm completely debt-free. I have a fully funded emergency fund and then I have like another $ to do. But you're in a great financial position. And so what is the – how urgent is this program coming up? Are you entering this this fall? No. So I still have to apply for it, and then it's, like, in the next year. Okay.

Now, in your financial position, could you live off of $60,000? Yeah, currently I'm living off of $40,000. Yay! I mean, if you can learn to live on that, then when you go down to $60,000, you're not going to feel it that much. Where is all the extra money going right now, just into savings? You said you had $20,000 set aside? Yeah, it's going into my savings.

I paid off my student loans last year, so what's that? So this is some newer income you now have that's not going towards debt. Right. And so I kind of just want to know how to allocate it, because I know we want to save or we want to know where everything goes. And so that's kind of where I'm at. Are you doing a monthly budget currently? I'm not the best at it, but yes.

Can I help you out with that? I'll gift you one year of Ramsey Plus, which will include EveryDollarPlus, our premium budgeting tool, and that will connect to your bank account. It'll make it super easy to track because making a budget is one thing. Tracking it is really where you see the progress. So if you do that, if I give you that, would you do it? Yeah. Awesome.

Well, hang on the line, Kelly. We'll get that for you, and we'll also give you Financial Peace University is included inside of Ramsey Plus. So watch those videos because you're on the path. You're doing this stuff, but I want you to stay on the path as your income goes down because the key here is keeping margin in your life regardless of your income. And if you still have money left over, making 60, making 30, or you supplement it with some of that savings to get you through that program, you're going to be doing real good on the other side of this with no debt and a huge pile of money. Yeah, I mean, she is off to a fantastic start.

I was really cringing waiting for her to share with us. The numbers. Yeah, but she's got a great emergency fund just really rolling along. And to this end, Ken, I want to remind people the options that you have when you do what ended. When you can go to school, do it debt-free, or pay off the student loans really fast if you've already got them. The options it gives you to even enter a program like this

and not be as worried. If you had $100,000 in debt, you can't go down to $30,000. You can't breathe. I will tell you, I'm glad you brought that up because her piece, Ann's got true financial peace. And by the way, Ann, I do hope you call my show. Call the Ken Coleman show because I'd like to spend a little bit of time diving deep on maybe the direction she could go. Because you heard her go, I'm not 100% sure.

So, in this case, even though she's got the PhD paid for, which I thought that was wonderful, it's still time, George. The money's not the factor, but it's still the time. And I'd hate to see somebody pursue a PhD not being sure what's on the other side of that. Let's spend the extra time necessary on the front end as opposed to spending a two-, three-year PhD program. Well, she sounds real driven. And the fact that she said, well, I'm already at the top of this, and I don't think it's just about money for her. I think she does want to just grow in her career as well. well and if there's money on the other side of that that's great impact and income yeah and i think she that's it i think she knows the direction she seems to spend

a little extra time getting clear before we make a time commitment you know the two most important things time and money man and and it's not always just a money play time because by the way that's money she doesn't need a phd and she can get right into the field, start making more money. That's just advancing two to three years' worth of income, which is what we talk about here on The Ramsey Show. Talking about your income is your greatest wealth-building tool. So, good stuff. Thank you so much for the call. Well, sharp, sharp, sharp, young lady.

That's so exciting. Don't tell me these young people don't have a bright future. That's just garbage. All right, don't move. don't have a bright future. That's just garbage. All right, don't move. More of your calls coming up. This is the Ramsey Show. Hey, small business owners, you know what usually causes small businesses to fail? Poor accounting. Yep, you know what usually causes small businesses to fail? Poor accounting. Yep,

you heard me. And not managing your books well often leads to not paying your quarterly income taxes. I don't want that to happen to you. In fact, I want you to be able to focus on what you love and let a pro worry about the tax code changes. That's why I recommend small business owners work with a tax professional like our endorsed local providers or ELPs. They're some of the most qualified tax pros in the nation. My team has vetted them and they're Ramsey trusted. That means they're committed to excellence. They want to see you win and they can help you minimize your tax liability which means you keep more money for your business to find a ramsey trusted tax pro near you go to ramseysolutions.com slash tax pro that's ramseysolutions.com slash tax pro Welcome back, America.

You have joined the conversation here on The Ramsey Show. I'm Ken Coleman, joined by my co-host and colleague, George Campbell. The phone number is 888-825-5225, 888-825-5225. Let's go to Tampa, Florida. Maria is on the line there. Maria, how can we help? Hello? Hi, Maria.

Sorry about that. Hi, guys. Thank you so much for your time. You bet. So I have small children, so I'll just get right to it. Okay. I am wondering how my husband can transition working as a 1099 contractor for a locally owned tow truck company to doing it for ourselves. And then I can provide any context

you'd like. Okay. So this might shock you. I don't know much about the tow company business. So there's a big need, not enough drivers and a lot of people who need help. Essentially, the owner is a buddy of ours who is fairly removed from the operation due to personal health reasons. And so my husband is actually dispatching his own tow truck calls as the only tow truck driver right now. Okay, so if your husband... He's doing all the work. Right. No, I get it. So the need is great. That's a good sign for a new business. The question is, what kind of equipment is he going to need besides a tow truck,

and how does one go about getting a tow truck if you don't have the cash to pay for it? Because you know we're not going to recommend that he go into debt. So how would he do that? That's where we're asking. So we are still in AB set two for our household. We have about $8,000 left in debt. And that's the thing. So the truck is expensive, used or new, very expensive.

But that is the expensive part of getting started. We don't really need anything else to just get going. How much is a tow truck used? A lot, like $50,000. And we don't want to do that. We can't do that. We don't want to do that. My mom said she'd buy it. We don't want her to do that. But here's the deal. When he's taking calls all week long, we split them 50, 50 with the owner. When he's taking, so he earns a total of $4,000 a week on average for the company, but then we have to split that, and then we pay the fuel. So we pay about, if that's 50%, about 20% of that, 20% is fuel, and then 30% comes home with us before taxes or anything.

Is he making close to six figures then? Before we have to split, yes. So for our home, our take-home pay, no, but for what the company is earning with just his driving and dispatching, yes. And that's where we're like, okay, how do we do this for our phone? So you're like, let's do this on our own so we could not have to cut this by 50%. Exactly. And the owner had a whole bunch of debt. He did it the wrong way.

We're so grateful for him, but he did it like every wrong way possible. And so his entire 50% is just like debt. How willing would the owner be to let him take over if he's kind of unable to run it? That is a wonderful question. I'm just wondering how hard is it to start a tow truck business from scratch and build the clientele and build the business? Yeah, it's a good question, George. But, Marie, I don't like it. I don't think that's what you were saying, George.

But I don't want them taking over a business saddled with debt. My question is – If you would hand it over, we would do it. Well, I would that's what you were saying, George, but I don't want them taking over a business saddled with debt. If you would hand it over, we would do it. Well, I would not take the debt with that deal. No, you do not do that. It's not worth it. Oh, is that what you mean, don't take the debt? Yeah, don't take the debt. Let me ask you this. Are you suggesting, if I came up with $50,000

right now magically for the used tow truck, is that all he needs is one truck to be able to do the numbers you're telling me, or is it much more than that? More trucks? No, literally it needs tow truck. Is that all he needs is one truck to be able to do the numbers you're telling me, or is it much more than that, more trucks? No, literally needs the truck to get the truck registered and licensed in the state. And then we already have, without being unethical and shady to the owner because it's information that can be publicly sourced,

we already have the contact information for the contract required to take calls in our area to produce at the same volume that he is. The only difference would be who the contractors that we are being reached by, like, hey, our client needs a tow on the side of the road, who they're paying. Let me ask a silly question. Can you rent the truck? Could you rent the truck? Could you rent a truck? I have considered asking the owner if we could rent his truck, but he doesn't seem willing to move much past the 50%. When we started, we were at 30, and now he's getting on 50,

and he kind of seems to be really stuck there. I think he has bills, and he's not earning any money anywhere else. And we've got dreams. We've got goals. I would love to be the one that gets to decide where that $4,000 every week goes. No, I totally understand. Because it would not be going to debt. But my point is, even if it's not the owner, who else would rent you a tow truck?

Because now, George, correct me, but this is a cash flow game. And so I know they've got debt. I'd like to see the $8,000 gone first. You're saying if you can rent it for $1,000, you can make $4,000. If you can rent it, now we're not in debt. It's a cash flow of getting the business going. I would

look into renting the truck in order to save up the $50,000 to buy when used eventually. Eventually. You built the business to where you... I'm sorry. If we're doing this while we have our own debt, if it was going to cost $7,000 to register we're doing this while we have our own debt, like, if it was going to cost

$7,000 to register a trust that's not... You guys can pay off your debt real fast. You have $8,000 in debt. That needs to be gone within a few months. I do that first.

And you don't have an emergency fund, right? Correct. How much money do you guys have right now? I can have one really fast. I have $3,000 because we just had a baby. So you have $3,000 to your name right

now? In our savings, yes. Okay. So what you need to do is we need to get rid of this $8,000, then we need to save up three to six months of expenses, and then we can focus on, first of all, we need to be investing too. There's other parts of life. And how old are you two? In our late 20s. Okay. Have you started investing at all? No, we haven't. We've had debt since our honeymoon. That's where it started. Well, this is the year. If you can get rid of this debt, get the emergency fund in place, you can be investing before the year is over, 15% of your income. Then beyond that, I want you to start to build this business. So we need to put pause on this business right now. That's correct. While we clean up the mess, because then you're going to

have some financial peace and stability, a foundation. Then we can focus on getting this business off the ground and we're going to do it with cash. Don't get starry eyed and take out a loan for 50,000 because you can make four a week. Yeah. And George, I'm so glad that you walked her through that because folks, there are other people in the same situation. And Maria, you need to understand this. That tow business is still going to be there. People will still need a tow. Imagine that.

The opportunity for you and your husband is going to be there. And the good news is you'll have no personal debt. You'll have a fully funded emergency fund. You'll be in Baby Step 4 where you're putting 15% towards your retirement. You'll be saving up for those babies, educational fees, and the business will still be there. I get it.

I want to say that I completely understand there's an angst there for her and her husband because they're looking at the numbers on paper. They're going, we're getting ripped off, man. They're going, oh, the opportunity is huge. But it's like, oh, well, you're not taking into account one thing or one and a half things or two or three things go wrong and you're in debt. This big dream falls apart and the very dream becomes a nightmare.

That's a good word. You know, my barber did this. He was working for a place and they get, and they get 50% of the cut. So he went, hey, I can make 100% if it's in my own chair. But that means starting my own business. And so he started making that move and ended up switching over. Yeah, it can be done. All right, so let me ask everybody a question.

When you think of a millionaire, what kind of job do you picture millionaires having? Is it some kind of high-powered executive like a a VP or CEO? Well, here's the reality. Only 15% of millionaires actually have jobs like that. The reality is that top five careers for millionaires in America are engineer, accountant, teacher, manager, and attorney. That's just one of the surprising things our team found out when we conducted the largest study of millionaires that has ever been done. Our study also made it clear that to become a millionaire, you've got to invest wisely. George was just talking about this. And a big part of that is getting good investing advice. You need to work with an investing pro who can walk with you and teach you about the options that are right for you so you actually understand what you're investing in

and why you're investing in it. Our team recommends trustworthy, vetted investing pros from all over the country. We call those folks SmartVestor Pros. If you would like to get in touch with a SmartVestor Pro in your area, and you can, they're everywhere, go to ramsaysolutions.com slash SmartVestor and start building wealth today. That's RamseySolutions.com slash SmartVestor. All right. George, we still got calls to take, man. The phones are lighting up.

888-825-5225. We're going to get to all of them coming up next. This is The Ramsey Show. Thank you. Welcome back to The Ramsey Show. I like that vibe right there, that music. Feels very get smart. The old school Nick at Night, for those of you that are old enough. Ken, you're showing your age again. I know, I'm dating myself

I feel like a little 1965 spy novel You also mentioned Thelma and Louise to a couple out during the break I had to Google it You don't know Thelma and Louise? I've heard about it It's one of the great road trip movies of all time Yeah from the 80's

Alright he's George Camel I'm Ken Coleman Whoa! Kelly's offended shots fired by young george i don't watch movies that aren't in 16 by 9 and in color okay i'm sorry i have standards what year what year were you born george 89 1989 we'll just leave it at that triple eight eight two five five two two five you're a resident millennial, George. Thank you. Some people are offended by the fact that I was born when I was born.

I can't help it. No, it's not your call. Thank you. It was a great time. At least you were born in the 80s. I feel good that I escaped the 90s. One of the great decades of all time. 888-825-5225.

Jacqueline joins us in Fort Worth, Texas. Jacqueline, how can we help? Hello, Jacqueline. Hi. Hi. How are you? I'm doing great. I hate to give up.

I'm glad you all talked because I didn't want to come after that lady, but there's hope for her. But I'm in a good spot with my house. Okay, good, good. How can we help? I just want to make sure. I want to do an offer, and I'm kind of excited about it. I want to make sure that I'm a money motivator.

I'm thinking about selling my house. I went to an open house in the neighborhood, and the house was selling like for $80,000 more than I paid for my house. And it's the same exact house, built the same year. Yeah. So whether I sell or not, I'm going to be okay. But just want to make sure I'm making the best move. So why are you looking to sell?

Well, it's not, I'm not in love with it, but it's a nice house. How long have you been in the house? I'm going to wait until November. It'll be two years. Okay years because I want to avoid the capital gain. Okay, good. And why are you selling? Are you trying to pay off debt? No, I'm in a good spot with debt. I am divorced for the past five years and the only debt I have is a $6,000 consolidation that I did. I paid off two cars. I paid off a lot of stuff. Good. So you have $6,000 consolidation that I did. I paid off two cars. I paid off a lot of stuff.

Good, so you have $6,000 left, so you don't need to sell the house. Huh? You don't need to sell the house in order to pay off the debt. You can just do that just through your cash flow. No, I don't need to sell the house to pay off the debt,

but me selling, I was going to move and go back home. Fort Worth is not my home, and, you know, I can help my sister without moving with my sister. But I want to do a do-over. I want to get another house. It's not my ultimate house. How much would you make on the house after you pay off the loan?

I'm not sure, but I don't even think they're going to get that. If they sell the house for $80,000 more than I pay for it, I'm assuming somewhere between $30,000 and $50,000. Is what you would net, even after closing costs? I'm thinking. That is the process. Let's call it $30,000. I'm just thinking that.

See, now you skip town and you've got $30,000 to your name. You've got no debt. Do you have a fully funded emergency fund? Okay, debt, I'm working on. Well, that would fully funded emergency fund okay that i'm working on well that would become your emergency fund right because by november more than cover my emergency fund i'll be debt free in a fully funded emergency fund okay good because by november this debt should be gone the six thousand and then oh yeah this is gonna be gone by june july or before okay and i would try to cash flow that emergency fund so that when you sell the house, that

$30,000, you can use towards your next goal, your next down payment, wherever you're moving to live. That's what I was saying to do. I wanted to do a do-over to do it the way that you all recommended. I mean, you just told me you don't like the house and you want to move. You don't want to even live there anymore. I don't hate the house, but I'm in Texas and my home is Georgia. Jacqueline.

You just said, I don't want to live in Fort Worth. It's not my home. I don't like the house. Just move. It's that simple. Wait until November. There it is. Don't overcomplicate it.

Yeah, there it is. I think tonight, go ahead know maybe play a little james brown georgia in the background while you're listening to where you're going with that okay she wants to go back home yeah she wants to be near her sister uh presumably some other family and in the meantime before you list it let's pay off the debt let's get the emergency fund in place yeah in this case the right way she don't want to be there there's no long-term reason for the house so then this case is she just wanted some confirmation. Yeah, there you go.

Well, I appreciate the call, Jacqueline. I love it. All right, George, today's question of the day from Blinds.com. Find out for yourself, folks, why Blinds.com is the number one online retailer of custom window coverings. You get free samples, free shipping, and with the new promos they run every month, you'll save even more. Make sure that you use the promo code RAMSY so that you get the best deal. Today's question comes from Jennifer in Wisconsin.

She says, currently my husband and I are on baby step two. I have a full-time job in accounting and I also work part-time in the evenings and on weekends. My part-time schedule does not conflict with my full-time job at all. My boss heard that I was working two jobs and was concerned about it. Honestly, I believe it's coming from a good place. He gave me a pretty decent raise so that I don't have to work two jobs. That was very gracious of him. However, I want to continue working both jobs

until we're in baby step three. I did scale back on hours at the second job, but I'm concerned that he may find out that I'm continuing to work the second job. Is it wrong to have two jobs if they don't conflict with each other? No, it's not wrong. And you should not be worried about him finding out if you're still working the second job, unless we're missing something in the question. You know, he may mean well, but what fear is driving this leader's decision to kind of go, hey, I'm concerned about you working two jobs. Here's where the question comes in for Jennifer.

Was your performance in any way slipping? Was it being affected by the second job? If the answer, George, is unequivocally no, then, you know, I mean, at the end of the day, it's not his call. Yeah. And if she hasn't had the conversation with him, I mean, she can be as honest as she wants. She doesn't have to tell him anything. But if you want to have the conversation and say, hey, listen, I appreciate the raise. I love working here.

I have no plans of going anywhere. I'm taking these second jobs because I want to pay off this debt faster. I want to get my place. And tell him. I want financial peace. Tell him how long. I'm anticipating that we're going to be at maybe step three, be through it at this point, at which point I am not going to work two jobs.

Maybe you get him on the Ramsey plan. Maybe. That would be cool. But it's truly none of his business. And it's not in direct competition. You didn't sign some kind of non-compete here in the accounting world. I don't know what you're even doing on the part-time jobs. There's no conflict of interest at all.

So his concern is very sweet but we tell him hey thanks for your concern but you don't pay my debt payments therefore you don't get a vote oh it's a very nice way of saying pound sand thank you ken or go fly a kite go fly a kite is another thing either one would be uh unkind yeah an old-timey by the way it's so funny phrases like that go fly a kite you know it my dad would say that when I was growing up. He'd irritate him. He'd tell those people to go fly a kite. But you never actually told them to go fly a kite.

That's true. Because if you did, it would kind of be the reverse of what you were trying to do, which is go buzz off. Well, in hindsight, those were very kind statements. These days, I don't get that in traffic, Ken. No one's telling me to go fly a kite. Or pound sand. No.

They say way worse things. That's right. But now here's the deal. This is actually an important issue. People feel pressure from their leaders sometimes that may not actually be there. Or if it's there, you don't have to feel that pressure. Because we have a lot of people that are listening and watching this show that are getting after it with the second job, George, the third job, they're gazelle intense.

So when we talk about gazelle intensity here on this program, many times that means multiple jobs. So it is a very key point that I want to make here that we're all about you working the two and three jobs, right? But you better do a good job at all three of them. And certainly, if we say that the second job or the third job are just part-time gigs, that primary job is vitally important. So that means you've got to bring it.

You can't be sloughing off because you're tired, because it is not a good excuse to your leader at your primary job. Well, I'm working two or three other jobs to pay off debt. I'm sorry I just fell asleep while I was driving the forklift. Oh, yikes. You know what I'm saying? Yeah. So understand that they

have no ability to tell you yay or nay and they're not going to say much at all if you're crushing it. That's my point. They may have a concern but but if you give them no reason for concern, it's okay. Go keep working. I wouldn't have cut back on the hours is my point to Jennifer. Keep at it. Take the raise and keep the hours going.

That means we're getting out of debt even faster. We're getting to baby step three faster, which means we're quitting that job, the extra job. So keep your chin up, Jennifer. Keep on going. Hey, we're going to keep on going, George. You good? I'm good. All right chin up jennifer keep on going hey we're gonna keep on going george you good i'm good all right we're gonna keep on going don't move more of the ramsay show coming right up Welcome back to The Ramsey Show. I'm Ken Coleman, joined by my colleague, co-host George Campbell.

Our scripture of the day comes from James 4, verse 10. Humble yourselves before the Lord, and He will lift you up. Our quote from Bill Bradley, U.S. Senator Bill Bradley, who was also, George, do you have any idea what he was famous for before becoming a U.S. Senator? Not a clue, Ken. NBA basketball player. In my head, I thought Bill Bradley is a basketball player. I'll bet you did.

It's our quote of the day. Becoming number one is easier than remaining number one. That's good. A lot easier to climb than it is to stay on top. To maintain. Very interesting. Good stuff. All right, the phone number is 888-825-5225.

888-825-5225. Let's go to Daniel now who joins us in Phoenix, Arizona. Daniel, how can we help? Hi guys. Uh, my name's Daniel and, uh, I'm working as an electrical apprentice in a company. And, uh, I had a question today about, you know, where to go in my career right now. So I've been working at this company for almost about two years. And right now we're doing this project where they just have me driving a water truck for like 10 hours a day.

And I was wondering, you know, should I look somewhere else? You know, because I'm also going to a trade school right now currently, and I'm learning a lot of stuff. But they just have me driving a water truck, and I don't feel like I'm learning anything. You know, it's electrical, so I should really be you know out in the field and I I talked to my boss about it a couple times and he just would tell me you know oh well you know that's where we need you right now and you know and it's been going on for about like I don't know close to like five six months and I'm kind of wondering you know like what's going on here should i just apply somewhere else because i know uh especially here in the phoenix area there's tons of electrical

jobs everywhere yeah well and i'm wondering what you guys two-part question had you done electrical work for them before in your two years have you done electrical work for them? Yeah, I've done. I've ran pipe for them, all kinds of stuff. And then what are you in a print, oh, excuse me, what are you in trade school learning to do? Electrical. So when will you be done? I'll be finished with school in about maybe like two more years. So two more years of trade school. And how much further up the ladder will that qualify you for? In other words, is there a pay grade that those two years of trade school is going to make you qualified for versus just staying with this current company

or going to another company? What's the difference? Well, if I go to another company, I feel like they'd have me doing more trade stuff instead of just, you know. Well, I appreciate that. But my question is, if you do go to another company and let's say you're not driving trucks that got you doing electrical work, you know, all day, every day, how much more qualified does the trade school make you? Or do you even need the trade school if you're working as an electrician for somebody else yeah that's a a good question everyone you know always tells me like um

oh you know you don't need to go to school but uh the school actually really qualifies you to become an actual what they call a journeyman electrician that's my question so that how much more money could you make as a journeyman versus what you're doing now just as a non-journeyman electrician? So right now I'm probably close to like $20 an hour. But as an actual journeyman, I should be making at least like $30, $32. Okay, great. So obviously you need to continue trade school. I think that's the right move.

There's no question about it. That gets you further up the ladder. I think you can start looking for jobs in other places. You know? I mean, you're low man on the totem pole is what it sounds like to me, meaning maybe the least amount of experience. Is that true or is that false? Yeah, but there's guys that are coming in like less experienced than me too as well.

So, yeah, I guess I'm climbing it up. Right, but I mean, are those guys that are coming in, like, less experienced than me, too, as well. So, yeah, I guess I'm climbing it up. Right, but, I mean, are those guys that are coming in with less experience, are they doing electrical work while you're driving the water truck? Yeah, like, you know, there'll be new tires, and then, you know, it's kind of like, oh, well, we need you here, but I see other guys brand new in the trade doing electrical, too. Why do you think they got you driving the water truck? Well, it kind of started where, like, they were like, oh, like, do you think they got you driving the water truck? Well, it kind of started where like, they were like, oh, like, do you have a driving driver's license? I was like, yeah. And then

they're like, well, let's see if we can get you approved. And then I was like, that's fine. And then, you know, like I got approved and I thought it was only going to be for like maybe a month or two, but coming on five months now, now they're like, oh, well, we still need you here. So they have a bigger need because some of these other guys probably don't have valid driver's licenses sounds like to me yeah that's kind of what it is all right all right now listen now listen get your chin up because this is a now we got a little bit more information i understand you want to be doing electrical work and you need to be looking for other electrician jobs in phoenix it's a hot market yes but don't get discouraged.

The reason they've got you driving the truck is not because they devalue you, because I think I hear a little bit of that on you, and I understand that. The reason they have you driving the truck is because you're probably one of the few guys with a legitimate driver's license or a non-suspended driver's license and all that other stuff. So don't get down. Just get determined. You hear me? And let's start looking today.

So you're saying find a different job? Yes, sir. No, I'm saying go look for another job where you can do electrical work. Yes, sir. Where they don't need a driver. You see what I'm saying? Yeah, perfect. Thank you, sir.

But I just don't want you to be discouraged. He's feeling stuck. Yeah. And we can get unstuck with all the positions available, and we know the trades are hot. This is not left-handed puppetry. Yeah, so Daniel finished trade school. And I'm seeing average salary for a journeyman electrician in the Phoenix area,

50, 60, upwards of 80. So he can make good money if he finishes his trade school. Very good money. Yeah, very good 80. So he can make good money if he finishes his trade school. Very good money. Yeah, very good money. I love it. All right, let's get to Kimberly in Colorado Springs, Colorado. Kimberly, how can we help? Hi, Ken.

Hi, George. I'm actually surprised I got through. But hi, I'm on baby step two. Well, my family and I are on baby step two. My husband is currently, he's been with his job for like 13 years and he's not exactly happy with it anymore but he's looking at other jobs but he's also scared to venture out into finding another job because we don't have that much in savings right now um so I'm just trying to figure out should we be pouring our money into savings instead of debt or vice versa what's he doing now

um he works in it for a school okay what's he wanting to do um he still wants to work in it um he just i mean i guess he feels comfortable in a school environment but um so why can't he just apply for jobs, and then when he gets the job, he takes the job? There doesn't have to be this weird gap where he just quits for no reason and then hopes he finds a job in IT. Well, yeah, I mean, I guess he could do that.

The problem is, it's like, okay, so he's on the autism spectrum, so it's hard for him to find a job to where um they can meet all his needs i guess where he's comfortable in the work that they give him and also he's kind of he gets overwhelmed very easily and so not a lot of people are willing to hire him okay so kimberly even more what ge said. We don't leave this current job that is giving him those benefits, or the benefit of the doubt, if you will, right? We don't leave this until we have something already signed and ready to go.

There's no interruption in income. The last thing you want to do in his very unique situation is rely on savings. Because even if you saved up four, five, six months, it is possible that you could burn through that. Yeah. Don't leave until he has another job to leave to. So my fear is if he does leave a job and he takes another job that makes about the same amount, what if he doesn't do well in that job

and there's not really much else he can do, you know? Are you working as well outside the home? I'm not. I'm a stay-at-home mom. I have a one. Well, she's about to turn one now. Well, Kimberly, I know this is a hard thing that you're grappling with, being a stay-at-home mom with a husband who's got a unique work situation. But the best thing he can do is apply for other jobs and have the confidence that he's going to be able to do it.

And if he makes it through the process and they see the value in him working there and he has the confidence, he's going to be all right. Yeah, and up to this point, he's been successful. 13 years. Yeah, I hear a lot of fear in your voice, but for 13 years he's held down a job at this place. And if that's where he needs to be because it's the safest environment, but do the homework. Why has he succeeded for 13 years?

What has to be true for him to succeed somewhere else? Go look for that. Find that. There doesn't need to be so much fear around the unknown when you guys know what will work. George Campbell, thanks for hanging out with me. Great stuff. I want to thank our team in the control room. Thank you all so very much. Thank you, America. This is your show. This is The Ramsey Show.

Hey, folks. Ken Coleman here. Did you know The Ramsey Show is one of the most popular podcasts in the world? Get your daily dose of advice on life and money. Check out all of our shows from the Ramsey Network wherever you listen to podcasts.