The Ramsey Show - App - What's the Next Step When Starting My Business? (Hour 1)

Episode Date: July 10, 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. Hello, everyone. I'm Chris Hogan, and co-hosting with me this hour is Dr. John Deloney, and we are excited to take your calls. So if you're out there and you've got a question about life or money, we want you to call us. The number to call is 888-825-5225.

Again, that's 888-825-5225. All right, John, are you ready for this? Let's do it. Are you sure? I'm on my speed. I'm ready to go.

I don't know if I'm at Chris Hogan speed yet, but we're going to get there. Well, we've got to make some stuff happen. Now, you can find us on social media. Uh, John,

tell him where to find you. You can find me at John Deloney on the Instagrams and the YouTubes and all the things. Okay. You're on those things. I'm still learning the internet, but we are getting there. We're doing well. Having fun.

He didn't know what that was, but we're teaching him and he knows how to help people. And he's glad to dig into relationship issues, loving it, uh, family issues, whatever it it is he's got a lot of experience uh you can find me on social media at chris hogan 360 as well and you can also find us at ramsey show so very excited and uh we're going to jump to the phone uh looks like here we got ken on the line ken how are you hey pretty good thanks for taking my call, Chris and Joe. Oh, you're welcome, my friend.

How can we help you today? Yeah, so I just had a quick question about stocks. So essentially, quick background, we are on baby step seven, so we've been really looking into investing. Good. And as part of my compensation package, we are awarded stocks every year, usually around 100 shares or so. And I know you guys are pretty big about not keeping stocks in a single stock.

This is a really large tech company, and the return year over year is around 20%. So I was just curious, once the stock's best, would you recommend keeping it within the company, who's having a really great return, the company's about 20 years old, or would you recommend pulling it and putting it into a mutual fund? Okay, this is a great question. So, kid, tell me this. What is your net worth? It's about $1.1 million.

Okay, so you're an everyday millionaire. Congratulations. How long have you hit that status? We hit it about three months ago after paying off the apps. Okay, fantastic. Congratulations, Ken. congratulations so let me ask you this is do you have other stock from this company from years past yeah so they vest every quarter and everything that's invested so far we've kept it in there okay all right and here's

what i would tell you single stocks absolutely are volatile uh they are going to cause you to swig on pepto like it's a milkshake. I don't advise it. That's why we talk about gross stock mutual funds. But you're an everyday millionaire. And what you have done is put yourself in a position to where if that's something you want to hold on to, you can. It is not something where your net worth is dependent on this. And so, you know, you're okay.

What do you and your wife feel like doing with it? Well, the company is just a really, really large company. It's probably one of the top tech companies, and the growth that it's going to project to, I guess, the course that it's going on, it just looks really promising. So until it dips, I was hoping to just leave it there. Yeah, it's just been really good. Yeah, I don't see a problem with that. I think the issue is, obviously, you've got to be careful.

And I would come up with that bare minimum dollar amount where you look at this and you say, hey, once it gets to here, I'm moving. I've learned my lesson because I thought, well, it'll come back and it'll hold on, and next thing you know, I've had a $25,000 mistake. So, I think it's smart. Look at it. You're not dependent

on this, but you have to be willing to lose it. And that's the reality. It's like going to Vegas. And Ken, I also want to pitch this in. My mom, uh, growing up, worked at this little company and I had a ringside seat to a company that was great and it was growing and the future looked bright. And it was a little company called Enron and everyone was on the Enron bandwagon until that sucker didn't exist anymore. And so sometimes it's easy to see what's sexy, see what's growing, see what, hey, it's going to do this. Stick with the principles, too. Stay safe with the principles. No, you're right.

And I coached a guy that actually at one point had over a half a million in Enron 401K. And from one day it was at 500,000, the next day it was at zero. It was at two-ply. Yeah, I mean, it was a 500,000. The next day was at zero. It was at two plus. Yeah. I mean, it was at nothing. And so, you know, you have to be careful with company stock. A lot of times they will put pressure on, on team members that if you believe in the company that you will invest in all of this, what you want to do is believe in your future and be very wise. Uh, it's about being intelligent. So, all right, Ken, thank you very, very much for your call, my friend. That's good. All right, let's keep going.

Let's get to line three. We've got Leah on the line. Leah, how are you? Oh, good day, guys. How are you? Oh, we are focused and not finished. How can we help you today? That's awesome.

Well, I just recently hurt my back at work. And I was wondering if it was worth sticking out. You know, with the dollar amount you guys are probably gonna have your jaw drop what i make but um yeah i was wondering if i should stick with it a bit longer and pay off my two mortgages and then retire or oh two mortgages all right well i'm curious to see if our jaws are going to drop so what is what is your income? Last year, $234,000. Okay, $234,000. Okay. And what is your net worth right now, Leah?

Only about $500,000. Okay. I haven't been able to save that much. I've been doing catch-up. Okay. And what is your age, young lady? I am 49. All right, 49 years young.

You said you have two mortgages. Are those a first and a second mortgage? Yeah, the home I live in and a rental. Okay, so the home you live in, how big is the mortgage? I have 242 remaining. Okay, and what's it worth? Maybe 250, 260 right now. The market dropped incredibly up here.

Okay, and then tell me about the rental. What's the mortgage you have on it? $413,000, and it's still holding its own. It's probably worth about $550,000, $600,000. Okay, all right. And so I'm sorry to hear about the injury. What line of work are you in? I am a heavy equipment operator and a mind.

Okay. Okay. So physical is a part of your job. You need that back, right? I do need my back. Yeah. And so tell me, how do you feel about this line of work? Do you enjoy it or do you tolerate it? Actually, I do love it. I do. So how long are you going to be out with this injury? Well, this is just it. I'm not out anymore, but it could be recurring because of the fact that the roads are so rough. So I know there's a dollar amount to this, Chris. I'm asking a different question. I'm hearing a different question. I'm hearing a different question.

It almost sounds like you have the answer to the call before you asked us and you want us to affirm something for you. So are you asking for permission to not go back to this job? Oh, no. That's what's it. I figure I have to do six more years. I've got to get to 55 to get to my retirement and get a pension out of it at the very least. So I want to lean on you a little bit.

Now I'm going to turn it over to Chris. You don't have to do anything. Yeah, that's true. And when you live that kind of language, especially with a back injury, that's how you end up at 55 and both knees are shot and both ankles are shot. And worse, your soul is shot. And so I want you to change your language to I'm choosing to, I get to, I love this. And let's hold over the break, and then we'll get to the nuts and bolts of the question with Chris's expertise.

Oh, I like that. So we're going to check in the language that we're using. All right, America, we're getting real here about life and money. This is the Dave Ramsey Show. folks i love telling you about well-made well-thought-out products today i'm talking about grip six belts i don't know about you but I'm not a fan of traditional belts. They never fit right, and they're uncomfortable. Grip6 belts are unique. Owner BJ designed a truly modern minimalist belt made of high quality materials with no holes, no flap, and no bulk. And the buckles come in really cool designs and are interchangeable. I personally own these belts in different styles.

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And before we went to break, we had Leah on the line. And Leah was talking about retirement. And she has dealt with a back injury. She's got a big income of $4 000 uh has two properties and we were talking through and before we went to break leah john dr deloney was explaining to you about the difference in the wording uh of have to and things that which is important here's what i'm going to tell you on the financial side i think it's time to start to re-engineer and reverse engineer your timing you said you've got about six years left.

And so what I want you to do is make a list of what are the things that you could do to help you get to your number and what are the things you should do. Okay. So two categories. And you start to look at this and you want to put yourself in a position for, because retirement's not an age, it's a financial number. And so you're going to have the pension but what are the things you could do or should do now i'm going to tell you point blank you tell me you got a six-year time frame i'm looking at what where do i get rid of payments where do i start to delete some stuff and this rental property is one of the things that i'm looking at going that's's $413,000. It does pay for itself, though, Chris. It does completely pay for itself through rental income.

Okay. How much is the mortgage payment? I pay $500 a week. Okay. And how much is the rent you're bringing in? I have two suites in it. So one's $1,150 and the other one's $1,650 for $2,800. Okay.

So it brings in $2,800. So you're probably right at making maybe around $700? Actually, no. I'm breaking even because I have to pay taxes and house insurance. And see, that's exactly what I was going to bring up. The taxes and the insurance are the thing that people – here's the deal. Would you go to work to break even? Yeah, you know what?

I set it up like that. I kind of screwed myself. I know. No, no, no. It's okay. But this is that moment of clarity where you begin to look at it and you go, well, wait a minute. Breaking even doesn't mean I'm getting ahead. If anything, if you get slapped with a repair, you get slapped with any other kind of issue, now you're dicking it into your pocket. So, Leah, if I'm in your

shoes, again, I'm making a list of could and should. Rental property is one of the things I'm going to get rid of. I'm going to take a hard look at my primary residence and go, am I here four or five years from now, right? And I want you to start to put yourself in that position. You've got a half million right now set aside you've got an opportunity in six years at this income of 234 you delete some stuff you can put yourself in a better spot and that's what i mean again let go of the age and as dr d said let go of the language that that makes you sound like you're enslaved and what i want you to do is be empowered and start to think that you can do some things i

love that and off the air chris you were talking to me about payment mindset yeah you know what the payment mindset doesn't account for a back injury yeah it accounts for a permanent never changing probably always escalating take home pay and a no problems in all of my cars and my homes and my trampolines and my jet skis and all the things. And it all is going to just work together. And it balances way, way out on the end of that limb. Hey, what are the two different ones? Isn't it the Hallmark movies that are always awesome?

But they had a little bit of moment and then it's all, ah. But the Lifetime movies are the ones that'll make your hair stand up, right? That's right. So we, in our mind, envision Hallmark. But we're not aware that Lifetime can come. That's right. So got to be aware. Now, I tell you this, and we got to shift out of it because, guys, these are crazy times right now going on with the COVID-19. And I know you've said never again do you want to find yourself in a position.

Never again do you want to be at the mercy of a global crisis. Never again do you want money to keep you up at night. And here's the deal. We know when you have the right plan, the right tools, and the right teaching, you never have to question if you're doing the right thing with your money. Ramsey Plus gives you all of that. It's our brand new all-access membership, and it can be yours to try today for free. Here's how it works. You'll learn the proven money plan from our best-selling content, including Financial Peace University. You'll budget and be able to take control of your money with every dollar

and track your progress with the new Baby Steps app. All of that in one membership. So start the money plan for real life so you can be confident you're doing the right next thing for your money. It's your choice, people. So to start your free trial of Ramsey Plus today, text the word trial, T-R-I-A-L, to 33789. Again, that's text the word trial to 33789. Also, Dr. D., people do not know, but inside of Ramsey Plus, you also have an opportunity to connect with one of our financial coaches. And so it's like a personal trainer with your money that you can talk to.

Hey, Ramsey Plus is no joke. It's everything. It is. It gives a great opportunity to have tools and also tracking in one spot. I love it, man. That's one of my favorite things about working here is just being able to walk up and down the halls and absorb all of this incredible talent and knowledge and skills and plans. Yeah, it's a lot of info.

So definitely check that out if you're not already in there. All right, let's get back to the phones. We got Joshua on the line. Joshua's in Texas and he's calling in to talk about starting a business. Joshua, how can we help you? Happy Friday, guys. Hello, hello. How are you today?

Doing all right. Pretty hot here in Texas. Yeah, I'm a lifetime Tex hello. How are you today? Doing all right. Pretty hot here in Texas. Yeah, I'm a lifetime Texan. Where are you calling from? Dallas. I'll forgive you. I'm from Houston and Lubbock, but I'll forgive you. I'll forgive you.

Hey, we're not going to have this Texas battle. Talk to me, buddy. Josh, what's on your mind? So a couple years ago when I was working on a government contract, I believe I received kind of a God-inspired idea to start my own cybersecurity company. And I've kind of molded over the last few years, but I have really no idea what the next step is. I've got it written, kind of the idea written on paper, but I don't know what the next step to do is in actually kind of kicking it off. Okay. Have you ever owned a business on your own before?

No. Okay. So what is it, from an initial standpoint, is it the running of the business or is it the technical side of the cyber industry that's causing you the most angst? It's probably the running the business. Okay. I mean, I have, the idea is to be able to train anybody and everybody on better security practices at home and at work so that they're safer on the internet. Okay.

And again, I know you've got some proprietary things you're thinking of with your business. I'm not going to try to have you detail the whole thing. But I would tell you this. If I'm in your shoes, I'm going to connect with other business owners that are business owners themselves and talking about kind of the nuances of owning and running a business. Number two, I'm going to do my homework on the cybersecurity side to find out what is out there, where are the gaps, and where do you provide a solution, right, inside of what's there.

And so that's going to inquire. It would become like a part-time job, literally, the amount of work you put in and the business plan development that you do. John, what are you seeing for us? This sounds like a great opportunity to try it out on the side while you keep your day job, you keep your health insurance, and you get one client. And you work with them and you tailor what you want to do, your presentations, your program for them.

And then you get great feedback from them. You do it at a way discounted rate and you learn, do I like the idea of what I'm doing? Do I like the idea of this business? And I'm going to tell you something that I'm a Christian guy. I believe that. I'm also going to tell you this. I've worked with hundreds, no, I've worked with thousands of students, and I have heard this phrase, God told me to do this thing.

And I'll give it an example of a singer. They'll come into my office and say, Dr. Loney, listen, God has told me. I've heard him, and I'm supposed to be a singer. And I hear them sing, and I think, yeah, I'm pretty sure he didn't tell you that. I'm pretty sure. I don't know what he's telling you, but it's not that. And so what I want you to do, whenever you feel a call, whenever you feel, hey, you know what? I have this inspiration coming from inside me. I want you to make sure you get a couple of wise people in your life.

It could be somebody at your church. It could be somebody that knows you real, real well and is not going to play games with you, is going to look you in the eye and be honest. And you're going to say, hey, I want to own a business. And if I told my friends, hey, I want to own a business, they'd look at me and start laughing and go, Deloney? No, sir. They know you. You're going to work for somebody. That's right. That's right. Or they may look at me and say, we've been waiting for this day. Go get it, buddy. Go get it, and we got your back.

Well, here's the deal, Josh. I think it's good to have that dream. More importantly, have a plan. I'm going to send you a copy of Entree Leadership that will kind of begin to give you almost like a master's degree in business, how Dave grew us from a card table in his living room to where we are today. Stay tuned, people. This is The Dave Ramsey Show. Hello, everyone. You are listening to The Dave Ramsey Show.

Before we went to break, we had Joshua on the line, and he was talking about starting a business. And Deloney and I were chatting with him and then offline. And I just want to encourage people out there, if you do have a thought or an idea, spend the time and the legwork in trying to flush that out. But, John, I like what you said about getting some wise people in your life that you can be real with about it that will shoot you straight to let you know does this sound good they can poke some holes in it that's right and man we talk about this a

lot around here this country's among other things is really struggling from a loneliness epidemic we don't have friends in our life we don't have people that we trust in our life and now we're at this weird place where we don't trust ourselves. We don't know ourselves. We don't know our friends, and so that all points to a picture of have people in your life that when you have high highs and low lows that you can sit with, and they will be honest with you and tell you the truth, and I've got guys that range in my life from 20 years to 40 years

that will look me in the eye and say, Deloney, that's stupid. You're not being right, right? And I can rattle them off. I got Mike and Tom and Todd and John. I got Trevor and Craig. I got these guys in my life that will say, it's not how we act, man. That's not who we are.

Or, Deloney, I know you want to start a pastry shop, brother. You will eat your body weight in cookie dough that first day. You'll have diabetes and you'll have nothing to sell, so don't do it. Well, it's important. And here's the deal. There's a difference between a hobby and a business. A hobby is something you do for fun. A business is something that actually is generating money.

So one of the litmus tests you want to do is realize, okay, what is my product or service? Where's the opportunity in the market? Can it make money? When will it make money? And how much can it make? And can I be the guy to lead it? Oh, that's a good point.

Right? Yeah. No, that's a good point. Is that what I want? Right. For you. And so, again, it's a thought process and I want you to spend the time in there, you know, really digging and looking at it and figuring out, is this something you want?

All right. We're going to get back to the phones. We've got, looks like we've got Amy on the line. Amy is calling us from Ohio. How are you? I'm doing well. Thank you for taking my call, gentlemen. Well, you're welcome. How can we help you today? Well, I'm just calling because I'm

looking for just another voice or voices to let my kids know that the path that they are on is a really, really good one. And they are going to be so glad as they get older that they don't have debt and they're saving and things like that. I think hearing it from somebody other than mom would be really, really good. Oh, well, tell us, what are they doing? Well, I have four kids. My oldest are 19. He'll be 20 in a couple of days. My next one is 18.

He just graduated from high school. My oldest lives, moved from Ohio to the Charlotte area two months after graduation because he wants to work for NASCAR. So he is down there working for a NASCAR team. Will eventually go to college and get his mechanical engineering degree, be a race engineer. My second oldest actually just got a job as an IT support coordinator at a local high school. So he will actually be making about thirty two thousand dollars a year um they i they both um have started their roth ira at my insistence um they're investing and things like that and i think they see it and they see the value in not having debt both of their cars are paid for um you know they're just killing it basically and i just would

love for you guys to say like i said so it's coming from somebody other than mom, that this is a really, really good place to be. Yeah. So they are in the process right now. You have obviously taught them about money. They're doing the plan. Let me ask you, Amy, how do they think they're doing financially? They're good. My oldest one, he lives completely on his own. He pays all of his bills

and he has several thousand dollars in the bank. So he's comfortable. He feels good. He's a little resistant. I'm not exactly sure why, but I've convinced him to do about $50 a week right now. And I'm kind of doing that for him. He's resistant to what? Well, I think he just likes to hang on to his cash. Oh, gotcha. And I think just living on his own at such a young age, working in the industry that he does, there's sometimes the potential there for injury and things like that. Of the two oldest boys, what are their names?

Michael and Connor. Okay. And Connor gets it. He's worked the numbers. their names? Michael and Connor. Okay. And Connor gets it. He's worked the numbers. He's putting 15% away. Right. You know, and things like that. Well, I'll say this.

I'll say this, Amy. Michael and Connor, hear me. The path that you're on is an incredible path, and you've got a great opportunity. You're on a launch pad, and on that launch pad, you can continue this path, and you can skyrocket, and you can put yourself on the path of becoming an everyday millionaire. But however, on this path, if you were to divert, if you were to trip up and do some stupid on a car lot and get a payment, what it would do is just delay you from arriving at the desired location. So it's okay to have some fun,

just do it with cash but i think you know you all are on a great trajectory it's all a matter of you can't do it because your mom wants you to do it you got to do it because you want to so it's important to tap into and understand the why and the what and amy can you can you are you in a place to hear something from me Yes, please. You have raised two hardworking, dedicated, single-minded sons. And as a guy with two little kids who are going to be living in the communities that your sons build, I want to tell you thank you. And I also want to tell you this. Over the next couple of years, as your grip around those two boys that you love more than anything in the world starts to loosen, you're going to feel your heart racing and you're going to feel yourself saying,

but I want them to make this decision and this decision and that decision. And there's going to be some that they do and there's going to be some that they don't. And I want you to rest in the fact that you love these two boys more than life itself. You've done a great job and they'll circle back to you. One of these knuckleheads is going to end up with a car payment. Probably the kid, the NASCAR guy, right? He's going to get around all these cool cars. Or a truck.

Or a cool truck. And you're going to hit him over the head with a roll at Thanksgiving. But he's going to remember the mom who taught him the way. And you've done a great job. And I want you to love these boys and whoever they become. Yeah. That's just harsh. I'm just telling you it's hard to let go of her grip as a parent it's hard raising kids none of this stuff came in my manual well and and here's the reality though you're right um you know independents young adults get to make their decisions and it's hard and you know

as a parent a piece of your heart's out there in the neighborhood now well i'm going to tell you this one of the things i've encouraged some parents as i've coached them is talk to your kids about your financial stupid yep right let's not just pave the way and point them in one direction share with them your mishaps and the things that you did because we can learn from people's mistakes right and it is important to teach these young men and they are on a great path and any of the other parents out there that are doing this kind of teaching and i want to encourage parents when you start teaching young people about money it's not one conversation okay one talk is a conversation education is ongoing and so ask them get to find out what they're

thinking and so you can learn more about them, and it can be helpful. And you mentioned it, but it's always worth saying again, conversations rarely cut it. They watch you. Yes. They watch how you spend money. They watch how you invest. They watch how you borrow. That's why I'm not worried about Amy's sons. They're going to be great because they have watched their mom and how she lives and the peace that she walks around her neighborhood and her community and her home.

Man, they're going to flock to that like butterflies and moths to a flame, man. Well, and speaking of, you've got a latest article out that's dealing with disappointment. Disappointment, anxiety, all of it, man. Seriously. It's a messy, messy time. And if you talk about being a parent, at some point you're going to be disappointed. That's the cost of loving. Yeah. Pain is the cost of loving. Yeah.

Pain is the cost of love. You can go through your whole life and not hurt. The only thing you've got to own then is no relationships, no love. And if you want the reward of being with other people in a messy, deep, real way, you're going to also have to have some disappointments and frustrations. Well, this article is featured on DaveRamsey.com. Again, it's dealing with disappointment. You have a chance to do it.

Dr. D is also doing some YouTube stuff. I'm proud of you with this new tech side of you. Hey, man, this is messing me up a little bit. I mean, you are out there now. Here are some of his latest videos. Help, I'm 27, married with two kids, and unhappy. Oh, how to get through a mental breakdown during these times.

And then number three, everything you know about anxiety is wrong. We're going through a lot of anxiety videos right now. Those are blowing up. They're doing well. Because people are anxious. It's anxious moments. Well, go check him out at John Deloney on Facebook, YouTube, and Instagram. And if you have a question

for him, here's his email address. askjohnatramseysolutions.com. Stay tuned, my friends. This is The Dave Ramsey Show. Thank you. Hello, everyone. This is the Dave Ramsey Show. I'm Chris Hogan, co-host of this hour, along with Dr. John Deloney. We're having a blast. And if you're out there and you've got a question, here's the deal. Pick up the phone.

Right? Call us, 888-825-5225. Again, that's 888-825-5225. We'd love to be able to take your call and your question. So, all right, here we go. We're going to Pennsylvania. We've got Nicole on the line. Nicole, how can we help you?

Hi, thanks so much for taking my call. You're welcome. So my question is, every time my husband and I are kind of not sure in what direction to go, we always call the show and we've never been steered in the wrong direction. So we're currently on the baby step where we're paying off our house and we were making very good progress with it. And then of course, kind of COVID happened. So we just stopped making extra payments and started stashing money away and are on top of our already funded emergency fund. So neither one of our jobs have really been in jeopardy. We're both in the

healthcare field. And so I'm to the point where I feel like my job stable, his job stable, that I want to take that extra money and now put it on the mortgage and then just start paying on the mortgage again. So my husband feels like we should just continue to save money and put it away. What is he fearful of, Nicole? So I always tell him he's a little bit extreme. So he's fearful of, I think he's so fearful of what happens if our jobs are in jeopardy. And I tell him, like, nothing has happened even closely remote to us being laid off or anything like that.

Right. Then he fears that our economy is going to tank and everything's going to be horrible again come fall. I got you. He's just scared. So he just has some fear. So how much do you all have a three or six month emergency fund? We're about like between the four and a half to five.

Okay. And how much money is currently in savings? About $25,000. Okay. And so here's the deal. And I'm going to let Dr. D dive in on the fear and the anxiety side. But financially, you are correct. If your income is stable and your jobs are stable, then you want to continue to work the baby steps.

Now, what I might do in this scenario, and you want to have conversation with him, is I would, let's say, bump it up. Instead of having a four-month emergency fund, let's just get to six and then take whatever's extra over and above that and throw it toward the mortgage. And what I would do, though, is talk with him, understand the fear, understand, hear him. Men are weird, Nicole. We can act tough, but fear is a real thing. And I think especially him being heard by you and you understanding and knowing him like you know him, I feel like you all can let the desire to chase down the dreams you all have that kept you on this mission. You don't get to baby step six by accident, okay? You just don't.

You guys have been teaming up and tag teaming life as it's come. You've been drop kicking drama and front punching anything else that gets in your all's way. This is one of those things. And I think you all teaming up together will let you keep doing it. Yeah, you can't get much better than that. Think of anxiety as a fire alarm. It's just an alarm system that says things are out of whack in my heart, my head, my ecosystem, and that I'm disconnected.

And that second part's important. So Chris's advice is the gold standard. If you sit down with him and say, I know you're fearful, and there's a chance, let's be honest. Let's say the fall comes around. As my friend says, Deloney, you're right. We might get hit by a meteorite in the fall. That could happen, right? And let's come up with an actual real plan. I'm going to give on four and a half months. So let's say, let's do it all the way full. Let's have a six month emergency fund and husband, I want you to sit with me. Let's do the math. I'm going to connect with you. I'm going to look you in the eye. I'm going to hold your hand. I'm going to truly hear you. And then we're going to co

create a plan together. And that means at six months, we're going to agree that we're going to co-create a plan together. And that means at six months, we're going to agree that we're going to start kicking in on the mortgage again. And then we're going to be okay. And that if his heart changes, it can't be a swirling mess of anxious nonsense. He owes you a sit down, look each other in the eye and say, I've got this new data. I think we need to go to seven months.

I think we're going to go to eight months. And put him in a position where he's got to come up with a plan because anxious people, and I'm one of them, we just spin out of control. And then you could sit down and have three years of emergency fund, and then it's like, well, but the volcano may erupt, Chris, right? That's right. So you're going to come with real data, real information, and most importantly, with connection. I like that. And again, I think taking that along the lines of revisiting those dreams, the things that kept you motivated to begin with, I think that to me is the game changer and allow you guys to stay truly focused and not finished. Thank you for that call.

All right. We got Joyce calling from Kentucky. Joyce, how are you? Hi, I'm doing fine. Thank you so much for taking my call. Yes, ma'am. What can Dr. John and I do for you? Well, that's kind of a situation.

My mother died about three weeks ago. Oh, I'm so sorry. I'm sorry. Thank you. Thank you. I appreciate it. She left a pretty sizable inheritance, and I'm getting pulled six ways to Sunday about what to do with it.

What I want to do is take the first $60,000 and pay off debt, including my house. That would make me 100% debt-free. My EOP investment guy is saying, no, you can't do that. The interest and penalties will be too much. All of the money was in IRAs and stocks. Joyce, are you the only recipient of the inheritance, or do you have other siblings? No, there's five of us. Okay.

Or six altogether. Okay. And so the dollar amount coming to you is around $60,000? No, the dollar amount coming to me is around $300,000. Okay, $300,000. But I want to take the first $60,000 to pay off debt. Okay. How much debt do you have, young lady?

About $16,000. Yeah, about $60,000. So this will clear you up. Oh, yeah. Well, okay. Completely. Okay. Most of that's my house.

Okay. And so outside of that is most of it's your home, and you're saying so you've been told and advised not to do that because of some penalties. Here's the reality. I like the idea of you being able to clean up mess. I like the idea of this inheritance being used as a blessing because your mother, and I'm sorry to hear about her passing, but she intended you all to have some things. And I think it's important to do the math and understand what

it's going to cost to liquidate some things. And as far as stocks and the actualization of the, of the realized gain when you go to sell, but I'm going to tell you something, uh, anytime you're able to clean up mess, that's a positive. And so get a second opinion, sit down, walk through it. You know what it is you're trying to accomplish with this money. And I think it's really important. Now, I will tell people if it is cash or something like that, it's okay to park that into a money market account until you kind of get your bearings. Because the last thing you want to do is let money that was intended as a blessing go through your fingers because you start trying to spend to medicate yourself and soothe. And there's no stuff that's going to bring our family members back.

That's right. Three weeks ago, I'm going to recommend that you take a breath, and I'm going to recommend that you grieve the loss of your mom. It feels natural to rush and try to solve this. What do I got to do with this money? Like you said, everybody and their grandma and their dog and their dog's friend is going to have some wisdom for you and what you need to be doing with this money yeah and the first thing that came to your heart is my mom's passing is and her gift to me her stewardship of her money is going to help me be debt free and i love that i that to me my heart would be worth the penalty especially if you got 240 50 grand on the back end of this to invest um but i want you to

find somebody in your life that you trust that will be honest with you that's going to help you filter out all the noise that probably will not be a family member i've got a specific person in my life that i ask money questions to that is not a family member because they don't have a dog in the hunt that's right they're just going to give me factual information. And especially when I'm grieving, that's the person I'm going to go to. But don't blow past your mom trying to solve the money question right now. Man, spend some time. Grieve the loss of your mom.

Blessings to you during this time. I know that's heavy. No, and I agree. And that is so true. And on the money side of this, you want to do the math and understand the tax implications and all the things that come with it, Joyce. And so my prayers go out to you and your family. Young lady, move forward and keep your mom's memory alive in your life. Go be deaf-free.

Go be deaf-free. Listen, America, I want to thank all of you for tuning in. I want to thank producer James Childs, associate producer Kelly Daniel, and, of course, America, all of you for tuning in. And, Dr. D., thank you for hanging out. We had a good time. Thanks for letting me join you, Christopher. Dude, we had fun.

We're going to do it again. This is The Dave Ramsey Show. This is James Childs, producer of The Dave Ramsey Show. You can listen to Dave, Rachel Cruz, Chris Hogan, or the rest of the Ramsey Network anywhere with the Ramsey Network app on your smartphone. Catch all of our full shows, browse by topic, or send clips to your friends. Head to the App Store and download the Ramsey Network app.