The Ramsey Show - App - Should Baby Step 1 Be Adjusted for Inflation? (Hour 2)

Episode Date: December 16, 2022

Ken Coleman & Jade Warshaw discuss: Why you should stop trying to build your credit score, Whether or not Baby Step 1 ($1000 emergency fund) should be adjusted for inflation, Men quitting the work force when they don't get what they want, Saving for retirement. Have a question for the show? Call 888-825-5225 Weekdays from 2-5pm ET 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 Learn more about your ad choices. https://www.megaphone.fm/adchoices Ramsey Solutions Privacy Policy

Девочка-пай Live from the headquarters of Ramsey Solutions, broadcasting from the pods moving in storage studio, this is The Ramsey Show. It's where America hangs out to have a conversation about life, specifically money, work, and relationships. I'm Ken Coleman, joined this hour by Jade Warshaw. We're taking your calls. We're up here for you, and you matter deeply. We want to get you some clarity, some hope, and some breakthrough today.

888-825-5225. That's 888-825-5225. Jade, you ready to roll? I'm ready. Let's rock. Let's roll. Before we do, I do want to tell all you fine folks that are listening or watching, if this show is encouraging you, entertaining you, equipping you in any way, we need you. You are the greatest marketing tool in the world. Word of mouth. So would you share the show, review the show, subscribe to the show, however and wherever you listen?

That would do us a huge favor. We want as many people as possible to know there's a positive, safe place to have a conversation about moving ahead in the most important areas of your life. Thank you for considering that. This is fun. Let's go across the pond, shall we? London, England, where Franklin is joining us. Franklin, how can we help? Hi.

So I was born and raised outside of the States, just to give you a background. And essentially, I don't have any kind of credit history in the States, but I'm moving to the States in a couple of months for work. And I essentially wanted to find out how best to build my credit score as quickly as possible for, you know, obvious reasons why you need a great credit score. And the fact that I'm looking to get into real estate investing. And so I just wanted to get any tips that you'd have in this regard.

That's cool. Franklin, thanks for calling. Are you familiar with The Ramsey Show? Are you kind of like a first-time listener? How'd you find us? So I listen occasionally. I haven't, you know, streamed it or called in or listened live. It's mostly YouTube videos and on Instagram and essentially with snippets of it over the internet.

Okay. Well, you know, here we teach things a little bit differently. We teach to get rid of the credit system and to get yourself as far from the need of a credit score and credit as possible. Our whole thing here is paying off your debt so that you don't have to, and building up money so that your credit score doesn't matter. So I just want to take a moment and kind of give you that foundation because if you're kind of listening here and there, you might not have the whole picture. So I kind of want to give you that picture so that you don't feel like I'm coming after you because it might sound like I'm coming after you a little bit, Franklin, but I'm not. I just want you to kind of see where I'm coming from. So we believe that the debt score or the credit score, I should say, is nothing more

than a I love debt score. It's basically measuring how you interact with debt. It has nothing to do with how much money you actually have. And I think that, Franklin, you coming over here to the United States, the whole point is you want to create this life. You want to make sure the money is good and the money is flowing. But the credit score has nothing to do with that. So the way we teach is that the best way to financial peace is like this, a series of baby steps.

All right. The first baby step, you're getting $1,000 saved. The second baby step is you're paying off all of your debt except your house. The third baby step after that is you're saving three to six months of finances and then you go on to investing, baby step four, and on up to baby step seven,

where you're giving generously, you're buying real estate in cash, you're doing all these wonderful things. So I think that right now, we're not having a meeting of the minds. So I can't tell you what to do, and I won't tell you what to do to improve your credit score, but I will tell you what to do to improve your relationship with money and to manage your money to the optimal degree. Does that sound all right? Yeah, yeah, it does. Okay. I guess, and maybe this is jumping too far ahead, but I guess my question would be, if you're, because again, a lot of deals as quickly as possible,

it's not very practical to save, you know, a lot of money. Sure it is. Yeah, it is. Look, we're trying to get you to a point of building wealth with as less risk as possible. And I know there's a lot going out there, zero down, you know,

all these different ways to purchase real estate. But that's ultimately, that's not the best path. And it's the path that's filled with the most landmines. All right. And we're trying to get you there peacefully. We're trying to get you there safely. And here's the thing, Franklin, you're going to do what you want to do on this, but you called us. And so we're going to tell you that if you're purchasing real estate outside of your personal primary residence, that you need to pay cash for it and save up to pay cash for it. And if you follow the baby steps, you will be able to do that. How old are you? I'm 31 now.

Dude, you're young. Let's work these baby steps and let's work them in order do you you're coming over here when you come over here what's the plan are you um I mean do you have debt now no I don't no debt now do you have three to six months saved up yes I do you do excellent what's the professional goal when you get here? He wants to be in real estate. So the real estate thing is going to be my side hustle. I'm currently a lawyer. Okay.

And I'll be working. So you'll be working as a lawyer, yes? And what's the income? Somewhere along in the six figures. Well, that could be anything. It could be specific. I mean, that could be 150 or 950. Give me a ballpark. It's just below 200.

Okay. All right. So here's what I wanted to say on this, because Jay's absolutely right. But Franklin, if I told you that I had a strategy for you to build a house, this is a house you're going to live in in the United States, and I told you that I had a strategy that would allow us to build the house in 30 days, like really fast, but it was risky, would you be in for that plan? I might.

No, that's why you're laughing. Come on, man man it's okay to say you painted me in a corner ken would you be up for that strategy franklin this is your house no no that's what jade's telling you you watch all these instagram videos of people saying hey you can get in and make all this money that's the quick plan but it's also crazy risky. Am I right, Jade? Oh, Ken, you're... I mean, that's what I'm trying to help him see what you're saying here. Absolutely.

This is a side hustle. Why would you take on something, Franklin, that is so risky when you can do it the right way on the side, and as a lawyer, you've got no cap to your income? What? That's what I'm telling you jade has laid it out for you if you work these steps you're going to be able to do this franklin keep going i mean you've got you've done it all you've paid off your debt you've got that three to six months man just start saving to pay cash you've got a good income the american dream debt

freedom that's the american dream you're coming over. I'm letting you know that's the dream. The dream is not having a bunch of real estate debt. I'm telling you, laying it out there. All right. Now coming up next, we're going to get to more of your calls and we'll reveal what Jade and I got right today about our outfits and didn't know. That's coming up. Don't move. This is The Ramsey Show. welcome back to the ramsey show where we talk to you about your life specifically your money your work and your relationships i'm ken cole Coleman, joined by Jade Warshaw. And this is kind of fun today. We had a little bit of a switch. Our good friend, George Camel with a K, a little under the weather today.

Oh, man. Didn't feel like he could go. He was a game-time decision. It was. And we got the email moments before I was wrapping up the Ken Coleman show. And I got the email, you'll be joining Jade Warshaw. And to be honest with you, since George is not here, I don't mind saying this is a real upgrade for me. And so, no, I love George.

But really excited, Jade Warshaw. If you're new to Jade or new to the show, she's our newest Ramsey personality. She's an absolute frigging rock star. And she's a great cook. And she has a great story and then on top of all of those greats she's got great shoe wear and i you know i get a lot of grief around here for for my attention to clothing and shoes and so the point is is that we didn't know we were going to be on the air together today we're both rocking the monochromatic look. We are.

I got the all gray on, head to toe. You're all black, head to toe. All black. But it's the footwear. Come on, Ken. Don't make me put my foot on this table, because I'll do it. You're younger than me. Now, for the listening audience, they can't see.

These are the classic Air Jordans. Our viewing audience can see those things right there. I believe I can fly. Woo! Yeah, there it is, folks. That's it. That wasn't bad for not practicing. Oh, yeah.

That was good. Was I on key? Yes. Okay, that was very intimidating. All right, so I'll show my kicks. Let's see these. What is this? Oh, wait a second.

Well, they are Nike. These came from Forrest Gump. Notice the socks too I think I think these were the shoes that Forrest Gump was wearing when he was running across the country thank you Jane thank you I don't know if that's an insult but we'll take it I mean it's good but we got the cool kicks on today oh yeah I once saw you wear all white oh been known to do that many times and I said this guy this this guy this is a different guy right here. This one swaggy dude is what you really thought.

No? Smoother than a fresh jar of Skippy. Wow. I'm going to take the rest of the day off. I don't even know what that means. Hey, I will say this. One little fashion tip, and this is for men and women. Monochromatic is a win.

I'm going to tell you why. It points to the shoes. So you've got to wear good shoes if you're going to go monochromatic. Oh, yeah. Because it's like you why. It points to the shoes. So you got to wear good shoes if you're going to go monochromatic because it's like a giant arrow pointing down to the accessory. So the reason we both have those shoes, see, maybe you haven't thought through this, but I have. The monochromatic outfit points to the shoe. Ken, do you know who you're talking to? Of course I thought through this. I'm sorry. I've now somehow offended you. Don't slap me. Well, let me tell you what else you need to think through when you're picking out your clothes.

What? Is it in the budget oh now you get these shoes on a budget don't you i do you know my husband resells jordan so sometimes people see me wear shoes and they're like oh my gosh and i'm like y'all don't understand i didn't pay like i didn't have to pay like that but you got a budget for this stuff and and and't go broke for a label. Please do not go broke for a label, people. No, no, no. You got the envelope. You got to put it in the line item. Yep. But just because you're on a budget doesn't mean, I'm speaking to guys only right now,

you can't look like a bum. No. All right? Please. Oh, you better not show up looking like a bum. That's what I'm saying. All right, there it is. We're ready to get to the phones.

Joe is on the line in Jersey City, New Jersey. Joe, how can we help? Hey, Ken. Hey, Jade. How are you guys? We're doing good. We're having a blast, as you can tell. What's going on?

Well, I just wanted to say, Ken, great stuff as always. And, Jade, congratulations on your luck. Hey, thanks, Joe. Yeah, so my question is, now that the market has kind of gone, you know, wayward over the last few years with the pandemic and everything and inflation and cost of living and all that has kind of gone up in almost the entire country, just wondering, have you guys considered, has Dave considered the emergency, the starter emergency fund to go up

maybe to like $1,500 or $2,000 because some of the prices for things like a hot water heater or $2,000 because some prices for things like a hot water heater or transmission, whatever, might be more expensive than it used to be when he wrote the book originally and started this plan. Now, this is funny, Jay. This is like, does the emergency fund, baby step one, need an inflationary adjustment? Very thoughtful question. What say you? Well, whose side are you on here, Ken? I didn't take a side. i just said it's a very interesting question everything else is hitting everything else is being adjusted for inflation i think it's a thoughtful question it is a thoughtful question and and here's where i'm going to approach this because you're not the first person to ask this joe and i'm sure you're

not going to be the last person to ask that question but what we have found is that when we ask when we teach for folks to get a1,000 saved, most people, and I mean, the statistics will tell you that 56% of Americans do not, cannot afford $1,000 emergency. And we actually did a study on the state of personal finance. And it told us that 36% of Americans actually have $0. Zero. Zero. Some might call it a goose egg no money saved so if you have a thousand dollars do you know what that's called joe that's called winning at life because most people just don't have it so where i can understand the mindset because trust me i have kids you know you know, we got cars, we got, there's a lot that can go wrong. And I understand that. But understanding what the, what the averages are and understanding what the actual truth of the matter is, which is most folks don't have

any money saved. If they have an emergency, they're going straight to their credit cards. All right. And they're taking an emergency and just turning it into a even bigger problem with zeros on the end. And so what we're trying to teach is an accessible way for you to plan for emergencies. And we've found that $1,000 is something that if you bust your butt and get it saved, it's actually enough to float you through. Now, here's the thing. It's not intended to feel like, all right, I've made it in life. I can just sit back and put my feet up, put my Jordans up on the desk, right? That's not what it's for. You know, we want you to feel that, that, that anxiety,

not anxiety, but we want you to feel that, that, that feeling of, I got to get out of this. Like, this is not where I want to stay. And that should light your fire to get through baby step two, so that you can have that three to six months and have that cushy feeling and that wonderful feeling of security. How does that sit with you, Joe? No, that's fine. You know what it is? I'm kind of getting started with the baby steps. I've known about it for a while, but, you know, the wife and I were trying to come to an understanding and agreement on how to go about it. And so basically, we haven't even just talked about this step number one, but I know that

my wife might feel more comfortable, as Dave always tells us, about the security gland. Oh, yeah, yeah, yeah. That is going to come up. And I think, you know, I just want to have an idea as to what would be said. Hey, Joe. I presented the whole baby steps to her, and she kind of likes it. Yeah. Let me ask you a question.

How much debt do you have to pay off? Uh-huh. Quite a bit. I got about, my wife has, under her name, but it's ours? Uh, quite a bit. I got about, um, my wife has, uh, under her name, but it's ours. Obviously I understand that. Um, it's about, uh, just under a hundred thousand, I think in, uh, student loans. Um, and then we have about maybe, uh, another 30 ish in, um, credit card or consumer debt. Okay. So I want to address your wife's comfort gland because you're bringing up a very good point and you're going to have to communicate this. She's got to

be on board. So I want to give you just something from a husband's point of view on that conversation. So let's just forget for the moment, the a hundred thousand in student loan debt, and let's look at the credit card debt or consumer debt of thirty thousand okay if you were to pay off one or two of those credit cards okay how much money would that bring back to your budget so in other words how much you paying out on the thirty thousand dollars what would you say ballpark figure of the thirty thousand not student loan how much are you paying out each month in minimums or whatever? Oh, well, without the mortgage, it's about like $1,500. All right. That's what I'm looking for.

On mine. Yeah. All right. So my point is, if you guys got really intense and you paid off $30,000, that's $1,500 a month that you don't have to put out. You understand what I'm saying? It's a mental game. Now, we want you putting that money into the student loan. So you're going to debt snowball this thing, but I'm just trying to help her see. We're going to have more of our own. You have more than you think. You got more than you think once we pay off some of the debt. So the safety gland needs to be focused on, whoa, we need to build up some protection. And the protection is not the savings. The protection is getting rid of the debt.

I'm not trying to play mind games with you and your wife, but she needs to understand why we need to be all in on this. Yeah. Have you guys done Financial Peace University? I went through. I did some of the classes. I haven't gone through fully and my life is going through

soon yeah I want you guys to go through that together and that's going to get her on the same page with you because that's key if you want to get

this debt paid off you want her to be on the same page Financial Peace will teach you how to do that good stuff thanks for the call

you guys can get there Joe hang in there alright she's Jade Warshaw I'm Ken Coleman. This is the Ramsey Show. More coming right up. Are you sick of planned obsolescence? You know, when companies make products crappy, so you have to buy more of their crappy products? Well, me too. And it's why I love companies like Grip6.

Grip6 is all about quality products meant to last forever. That's why their comfortable, bulk-free belts, slimline wallets, and lightweight wool socks all come with a lifetime warranty and simple returns and exchanges. So check them out at Grip6.com today and get up to 20% off with the promo code RAMSEY. This is the Ramsey Show, where we talk about your life, specifically your money, your work, and your relationships. I'm Ken Coleman. I'm joined by my colleague, Jade Warshaw. This hour, 888-825-5225 is the phone number to jump in.

888-825-5225. Jade, I've got to get something off of my chest here. Oh, boy. I'm curious to know your thoughts on this. Yeah, this is going to be a little spicy, particularly for men. So, dudes, you're just going to have to handle this because I'm coming at you. This is a big buildup. Well, it's distressing.

Headline that I looked at, and it's coming from a new study from the Federal Reserve Bank of Boston. Men are dropping out of the labor force because they're upset about their social status. I'm just going to let that sit for a second. I don't know that I've read a more pathetic headline in my lifetime. I'm going to say it again, and I want you to hear what it really is saying. The headline is, men are dropping out of the labor force because they're upset about their social status what it should say is men are quitting because it's not going the way they want it to oh man i'm not making as much money as the other guy so i'm gonna go home and live off of mom and dad you snowflake you wimp what is happening here all right now before i go further into data i got to take 30 seconds on this and some of you are going to say oh you're old school

or you're a boomer well number one yes i am old school number two i'm not a boomer i'm proud member of generation x whatever the crap that means i've never understood what that means but let me tell you something. You know where this starts? It's generation, a total generation, where we tried to make everybody feel good and we gave everybody a trophy or a participation ribbon for showing up. And I got news for you people.

This is what happens when we try to make everybody feel good and we try to avoid having them feel the sting of loss. I got news for you there's first place and then there's loser i'm just being honest you go first or last well but listen you say well kid what about the olympics they got they got the the gold medal the silver medal the bronze well these are olympians who work really hard we should acknowledge first second third place but in youth soccer when the score is five to nothing i got news for you little buddy you lost you lost five to nothing and by the way the five-year-olds know these kids are smart enough to realize that the ball went in the other team went in our net twice and we haven't even sniffed

the other side of the field and you want to know what can they can handle it they can jade they can handle it these kids are resilient but these dudes can't and that's a shame now listen folks here's the data um the study found that the decline in earnings for non-college educated men over the last four decades has increased their likelihood of leaving the labor force by nearly half a percentage point now this this might hurt some of your feelings but i i can say this younger white men in particular were more likely to leave when their expected wages fell relative to their more educated peers but while the white men are whistling out, turns out the ladies aren't, Jade. Tell us. Women have not seen the same level of decline in their wages based on education.

Wow. That group has seen a 32% increase in weekly earnings. Now, there's two things I want to get at. First, we have a culture that has created this context. What do I mean? Very simple. We have for decades said that the college diploma is the most desirable way to live a life. In other words, if I have a college degree, I'm going to be more successful. And so the numbers have borne out that way because companies play the game too. Oh, you don't have a degree. But the bigger problem is we have men that are leaving the workforce altogether. They are taking their ball and going home. You didn't pick me, so I'm going to go home, and mommy's going to make me feel better

and cut me a PB&J sandwich and let me play on the video games all day long. I'm telling you, that's what's happening. I'm just keeping it real. Not my sons, Ken. Not my sons. Oh, I know better than that. And not my brothers. Not my boys.

Because if I heard that. You know what? And here's what needs to happen. Here's the fix. There's not a policy in the world that's going to fix this. Yeah. This is a social problem. And I'm trying to have a little bit of fun with it, but I'm making a key point.

If you are a family member, if you are a mom or dad, a grandparent, a brother, a sister, a cousin, a good friend, and you are harboring, and I'm using that word on purpose, you are harboring a wussified dude who's got his feelings hurt and refuses to go work and be a productive member of society, it is incumbent upon you to kick their butt out. Okay. I'm just telling you, it's a problem. Ken, give me some dap. I don't even know what that means, but I'll do it. What's the dap?

The dap is I'm with you. I'm with you, heart and spirit. See, folks, I'm getting cooler by the minute. All right? Now, I'm going to go home and do that with my 17-year-old kid. He's going to roll his eyes so hard they fall out of his head. What do you think about what I just said? And I'm not looking for approval.

No, not at all. This is a societal problem. It reminds me of, okay, I mentioned earlier, Sam and I have a talent agency, and we book talent all around the world. Yeah. And to get the job, there is a series of protocols you have to follow. And I find, Ken, America's the greatest country. I would agree.

It goes without saying. But it's cushy the greatest country. I would agree. It goes without saying. But it's cushy up in here. Very cushy. It's cushy. You nailed it. In comparison to some other countries. That's right.

And what we find is that if we're hunting talent in, let's say, the Philippines or India, where life in some areas is not as cushy, when we tell them, this is what you have to do to get the job they do that thing lickety split don't ask questions jump in jack flash they get that thing done whereas some of the counterparts who are here in the states they could be a better player they could be better at the job but they don't feel that they should have to do yep and so they they and they sleep on it and i'm like now wait a minute now what's going on the job is the job but i think what happens is you get cushy you start having entitlement you start

having this i deserve mentality and i think the i deserve mentality can be that's right it can it can be the beginning of the end well it is and you've nailed it so you all kind of some of those of you the roll drives and laughed at my whole thing about a trophy, but see, this keeps getting, it keeps getting supported throughout where I show up and I'm rewarded for showing up. Just for showing up. As opposed to getting rewarded for accomplishing. Right. Here's what happens. These men are falling out of the workforce because they look at the competition and they're getting beat.

And instead of rising up and going, all right, I'll get you next round. You know what they do? They go, I'm just leaving altogether. You know why? Because they've been protected from failure. That's right. And failure, best I can tell, Jade, with every successful woman or man in the history of the universe, failure is what propelled them forward. You can't learn to ride a bike without wrecking a bike.

It's necessity. And I'm telling you, we have protected our kids from failure. And as a result, they've got no grit. So what happens is we coddle them until they get to the real world. They fail or they feel like a failure because he's making more money than I am. And so they don't know what to do because they've got no grit. They don't know how to act. If you find anybody who's successful, and I'm not talking about, you know, at the very

time, I'm not talking about the Michael Jordans. I'm talking about Ken Coleman. If I talk to you, a successful man, good at marriage, good at their job, you will list out. You could probably make a whole computer list of all the ways that you didn't get the trophy. All the things that you endeavored at and failed at. Hey, I got told by a program director in Atlanta, second year into the chase, folks. Guy looked at me and said, I don't know why you're trying to get on this sports talk station.

This is a number eight market. And he said this, I'll never forget. He said, Ken, you don't have the talent to make it in a number eight market. Oh, yeah. Oh, yeah. I've been forget. He said, Ken, you don't have the talent to make it in a number eight market. Oh, yeah. Oh, yeah. I've been there. Let me tell you something.

I did, and I do, and here I am. Come on, son. But listen, it hurt. I know it did. I'm having a little bit of fun, but I'm not puffed up. I'm telling you, I went home, and it rocked my world to hear that from you. Oh, yeah. But somewhere in the next 48 to 72 hours, I had to decide. Come on. It's about what you do next. What am I going to do? Come on. Nobody's going to hand you

anything snowflake. Like you got to get out and take it. It's like that old trick when it's like you get ready to open the door and then they drive forward again and you try to open the door, they drive again. Yeah. That's it. You know, I talk about this all the time to my boys and they're sick of me saying it, but you know, I'm trying to teach my kids. You know, I talk about this all the time to my boys, and they're sick of me saying it, but I'm trying to teach my kids. You're in a competition. And if you don't think you're in a competition, I got bad news for you. You're getting your head beat in. You don't even know it.

You're competing against the you of yesterday, and you're competing against someone else. Not in an ugly way, but I'm telling you. Healthy competition. You're trying to book artists. Come on. And there's always someone who's practicing more than you, that's studying more than you. You're trying to book artists. Come on. And there's always someone who's practicing more than you, that's studying more than you. You better believe it. While you're complaining, they're out there getting better. Yeah. Well, good stuff there. All right. I feel much better.

Coming up next, a question about saving for retirement or future education. We'll break that down. This is The Ramsey Show. Taking your questions about life, specifically your money, your work, your relationships, this is The Ramsey Show. I'm Ken Coleman, joined by Jade Warshaw. And you've probably heard the words inflation and layoffs and recession and blah, blah, blah, blah, blah, all over the place used as what I like to call negative bombs just to get your attention so you'll watch the tv a little bit more the truth is you can't control what's going on in the white house but you can't control what's going on at your house i'd love for you to think about and actually join me dave ramsey rachel cruz dr john deloney jade warshaw uh and

chris no no you're shaking your head why are you you shaking your head? I don't know if I'm going to be part of this one. All right. Never mind. That's news to me. I'm making stuff up. It's not in the copy. No, no, no. You're right.

You're right. You're right. What are you doing? You know I've been married almost 25 years. If I start seeing someone and a woman next to me shakes her head, I can't concentrate. Well, Ken, you called me out. I thought I was saying nothing wrong. I'm saying something wrong.

No, no, no. No. Keep going. Keep going. This is good. You are going to be there. All right. I thought I was saying something wrong. No, no, no. Keep going. Keep going. Building wealth. This is good. You are going to be there. I'll be there.

All right. You're going to be there. It's going to be fun. Here's the deal. We want you to check out the website, ramsaysolutions.com slash events, for our continuing event series. The tour is Building Wealth. It's going to be in Nashville here at our, I believe here at our headquarters. That's right.

It's going to be fantastic. January the 12th. Thank God you said that was right. That's right, Ken. Indianapolis, Indiana on February 16th. I'll be there. Austin, Texas. Oh, now you're there.

Would you pipe down, please? Austin, Texas, February 23rd. Salt Lake City. I'm going to pay for that one later. Salt Lake City, Utah, April the 24th. Anaheim, California, May 2nd. And this is a wonderful event. We're going to teach you how to inflation-proof your money,

build lasting wealth, and invest wisely. General admission passes start at just $49. Don't wait. They will sell out. All of our fall building wealth events did sell out, and these will too. Again, go to RamseySolutions.com slash events. That's ramseysolutions.com slash events. Are we on the docket together? Are we in any cities? What cities are you in? We're going to be in Indianapolis and Austin together. Oh, okay. Very nice. Yeah. No,

no. Actually, I'm in Austin and Anaheim. Oh. So you and I will be together in Austin. Okay. That'll be fun. Okay. Very good. It's good. All right. Well, we'll get our schedules figured out on the break, but the great news is we are here for you. Let's get to the phones. 888-825-5225 is the phone number. Hannah is up in Ogden, Utah. Hannah, how can we help? Hi, how are you? We're having a blast. What's going on? So I am a long-time listener. I've been listening since probably before I can remember. My dad really likes Dave Ramsey and has encouraged me and my siblings

through the baby steps, and I've done that. Good for you. I am 26 years old. I'm debt-free except for my mortgage. My husband and I bought our house back in January of 2021. And so where we're at right now is, um, I'm making enough money that he's going and doing a career change. Um, he's working part-time and give me his education so he can do this career change and make more money. Okay. I'm contributing all, I'm maxing out my retirement

at the company that I'm working with right now. Okay. And my question is, because I would eventually like to not change careers, but go and get further education in my industry. And so my question is, do I keep putting the money into the retirement fund, or should I take it out and invest it in a different way?

Because I know we're probably going to have to move. What's the education that you're pursuing, and what do you think the ROI is, and then what is it going to cost? So that's a three-part question. So the education I'm looking for will be a, I work in compliance and so it will be a master's degree in environmental compliance type setting. The way that the industry works, it is set up that a master's degree is required to, it make it easier to climb up to certain levels, so there would definitely be a return on investment.

And then the company that I'm working with right now also has, they will help pay. So what would be your cost? What would be your cost to get this master's? My cost to get this master would be our living expenses. I would take a cut on my income at the time because working full time and doing a master's degree would be like I know who I am. I know people who can do that. I but I can't be a little bit of a cut in income would probably have to move to be closer to this school that I want to go to. And how much dollar wise, how much is it going to go to. How much? Dollar-wise, how much is it going to cost?

Dollar-wise? Per semester. Per semester? About $6,000 per semester before any assistance from grants. Yeah, but see, you're making it too complex. What is your out-of-pocket total? Not per semester, total.

Total, okay. Probably $20,000-ish. total not per semester total total okay um probably 20 000 okay that's our number i just wanted to give that to jay yeah it's 20 000 now i want it before i give it to you on the money piece i do want to cover this the school i want to go to that's a very concerning phrase i agree hannah nobody and i mean nobody gives a crap where you get your masters you just got to get the masters and it feels like to me we're adding extra hoops to jump through when we're considering selling a house moving somewhere to go to school that i want to i'm going to challenge you on that and you don't have to respond because i'm not trying to put you on tilt, but I just want you to know nobody cares. Last time you went to the doctor, you didn't ask the doctor where he went to med school or she went to med school. Right. So I'll just leave it at that, Jade. But now we know we got $20,000 she's

got to save for to cash flow the master. And this is for the entire year? That's the total. That's for two years. That's the total. Oh, she needs $20,000 total. Oh my goodness. You can cash flow this. What's your income right now? My income right now is $60,000 a year. And then, like I mentioned, my husband is working on a career change that'll be done probably in the next six months or so. And so he'll be making equivalent to that as well. So are you asking about the investing question because you feel like it's going to take you longer? Can you keep investing as we teach and still get the 20 saved up? Or is it going to take a really long time? I mean, that's $833 a month. If we just broke that out over two years,

you got $833 a month that you need to save. Let's work it backwards. What do we need to do? Because I mean, if you don't have that money yet to start this coming semester, that's okay. You know, the house is not on fire. What do we need to do to make this scenario true for you to where you're saving up that kind of money so that you can cash flow this and actually make it work out? And not stop saving for retirement. and not stop saving for retirement and not stop saving for retirement because i did want to ask you more about that but i mean i know that you're maxing out your 401k but we really want to get you to the 15 so if you're not at 15 we want you to get there and then we can start working on what does it look like to be able to pay for this as we go

you know and i think i think that you can i think if you find the right the right um school that's within your budget because again ken gave great advice about making sure that we're not just you know choosing a school based on the name or based on what what quote they say but picking a school that's actually in line with your budget so you can get this master's and you know 20 you know the 20 000 number that gets you to 833 a month but maybe there's something out there that you can do that's less expensive i don't know um is there online options that are less expensive i know i know there's something out there that's going to work for you it's just a matter of you know turning enough door handles until you find the one that's got the prize behind it you know what i'm saying? Yeah. Yeah. Do you feel that you can keep investing

as Jade instructed and save up for the master's program? Um, it'll be a little bit easier once the career change for my partner. Yeah. Okay. That comes to fruition. All right. Well, be patient. Be patient. I'm not in a hurry. That's beautiful. Be patient. So I think Jade. Be patient. I'm not in a hurry. That's beautiful. Be patient. So I think, Jade, what you and I are saying is don't interrupt the investing. I don't think it's necessary. No, let her husband finish his career shift and then let him get stable. Let the income kind of, you know, let everything settle out. And then we start the journey. And during that time you're researching, right? We're not just sitting around.

You're researching what your situation is going to look like. And you're starting to plan out and plot that forward. And then when he's done, then it's your turn. And you guys work the plan. You guys are smart. You're very smart. You've made great choices up until this point. I love that you said that you're not in a hurry.

You guys got what it takes to win. Absolutely. Keep investing. And Jade's right. The full 15%. You're going to love her for that advice many, many years from now. So keep it up. Jade Warshaw, always fun to be with you, my friend.

Great hour. I want to thank James and the Hardy fellas behind the glass for keeping us on the air. I want to thank you, America, for listening. This is your show. This is The Ramsey Show. Dave here. You can find all of our shows with the Ramsey Network app on your smartphone. It's the only place to listen to the entire back catalog of episodes. Download the Ramsey Network app in your favorite app store today.