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Dave Ramsey critics

written by Bob Lotich, CEPF® | Debt Help

Dave Ramsey critics

Are you a Ramsey fan or critic?

Dave Ramsey seems to attract quite a few critics these days. I have heard him being criticized for everything from being over-simplified to allowing people to use debit cards to buy his products.

It is interesting to me how some people can find anything to criticize. Some people see the world with rose-colored glasses and think everything is perfect and others will never be happy with anything and therefore criticize everything. Most people are somewhere in between. But I guess after it is all said and done, we are all critics in one way or another.

dave ramsey critics

Personally, I like Dave Ramsey. I think he has an excellent program that helps a LOT of people. It is a very basic and simple way of doing things, but it works for most people. I assume that is why he designed it that way. He wanted to help as many people as possible, knowing that he couldn’t please them all.

Experts are often the critics of simple tools and systems. Most times these experts are more advanced than the product they are criticizing and most of the time what they are criticizing was not intended to be used by them.

The iPod and Dave Ramsey

Let’s take Apple as an example. There were dozens of MP3 players on the market before the iPod came out. Apple just took the existing technology and made it so simple and easy to operate that your grandma could use it. They did not seek to satisfy the “techies” who were already using MP3 players. They were going after a market that wouldn’t have bought one unless it was simple.

Dave Ramsey is like the iPod of the financial gurus. While so many of the other financial guys are arguing and debating about trivial issues that are over most people’s heads, Dave was figuring out a way to boil all these financial principles down to a 5th grade level. He succeeded.

Dave’s books and seminars are designed for beginners and not for the people who have mastery over their finances. It is not perfect advice for everyone, but it is great advice for most people and is exactly what millions of people need.

Everyone is a critic

That said, just like all the other Dave Ramsey critics, I don’t agree with everything he preaches, but I think I understand why he says what he says.

  • I haven’t cut up all of my credit cards, but if I were trying to help someone who didn’t have much financial discipline, I would probably suggest cutting them up.
  • Mathematically, paying off the highest interest rate credit cards first would be a better idea. But, I understand the necessity for motivators on the journey to financial freedom. This is why Dave suggests paying off the smallest balances first, regardless of the interest rate. Getting a quick success under your belt is a much needed motivator for most people.
  • I chose to save for retirement WHILE paying off my debt. Dave would suggest not saving for retirement until the debt is paid off. I know that I am not going to quit on the way towards my goal, but for some people knocking out the debt first is probably a good idea.

Although I do some things differently than Dave suggests, I understand why he is doing what he is doing. I am not his target market. Knowing this, I want to help him reach those people who he can help. So, I will just keep applauding him as he ignores the critics and keeps helping people break out of debt.

Related posts:

  1. How to cast your cares on the Lord with your finances
  2. Why I use credit cards instead of debit cards or cash
  3. How to save $1000 (in 1-3 months)
  4. The 3 types of tithing in the Bible, and the 2 you shouldn’t do

About Bob Lotich, CEPF®

Bob Lotich, CEPF® is a Certified Educator in Personal Finance and has over 15+ years experience writing about Biblical personal finance. He is the award-winning author of Simple Money, Rich Life and has been named a top 20 social influencer in personal finance. Check out his on-demand Christian financial class for couples, small groups and churches called True Financial Freedom.

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Hi there! We are Bob & Linda Lotich. Jesus followers, authors, podcasters, and undying fans of Michael Scott.

This site contains the lessons we learned on our journey from being stingy, debt-ridden fools, to being able to reach our biggest financial goal of giving $1 million by age 40, having zero debt & a paid off house by age 31, and peace with money in the process.

Now we share our best lessons with people like you, groups, and churches with our Award-winning book Simple Money, Rich Life and our 6-week video course True Financial Freedom.

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