Dear Dave, <\/p>\n
My wife and I are on Baby Step 2 of your plan. Right now, we\u2019re almost finished paying off the last of our non-mortgage debt, which includes unpaid taxes from previous years and some old credit card bills. We\u2019re in a much better place financially than we used to be, and I\u2019d like to start putting a little money aside for a vacation and a couple of other fun things down the road. My wife disagrees with this idea. She wants to stick to your plan 100% and finishing paying off the debt, then move on to fleshing out our fully-funded emergency fund. I think we make enough money to do both. What do you think?<\/p>\n
Jackson <\/p>\n
Dear Jackson,<\/p>\n
In general, it\u2019s okay to save up for things like vacations and other fun stuff. In fact, it\u2019s what I recommend, rather than creating debt by piling things like that onto credit cards. But your idea isn\u2019t what I teach when it comes to getting out of debt and gaining control of your finances. So, I can\u2019t tell you I think it\u2019s a good idea.<\/p>\n
The reason people are successful following my plan is because I teach common sense and discipline, combined with an uncompromising, scorched-earth kind of intensity. You have unpaid taxes, not to mention credit card debt, still hanging over your heads. And you\u2019re talking about planning vacations and buying toys? I\u2019m sorry, man. That\u2019s just plain irresponsible. Why would you want to take a chance on jeopardizing\u2014or even slowing down\u2014your journey to get out of debt, save money and achieve financial peace?<\/p>\n
There\u2019s a process here, Jackson. And millions of people all over the country can tell you, from experience, that it works. There\u2019s an idea, a concept behind what I teach. And when you plug into it, and stay plugged in, you\u2019re going to start moving in a positive direction faster than you ever thought possible.<\/p>\n
Behaviors have to change. The more dramatically they change, the better the results and the faster you fix things. But if you don\u2019t dive in head-first, if you try to cut corners here and there, you\u2019re going to mess things up. Think about it. You two have already saved a beginner emergency fund, and you\u2019re so close to being completely debt-free except for your home.<\/p>\n
I\u2019m begging you, man. Keep on keeping on just a little longer. I promise you it will be worth it! <\/p>\n
\u2014 Dave<\/p>\n
Dave Ramsey is CEO of Ramsey Solutions. He has authored several best-selling books, including “The Total Money Makeover.” The Ramsey Show is heard by more than 16 million listeners each week on 600 radio stations and multiple digital platforms. Follow Dave on the web at daveramsey.com<\/a> and on Twitter at @DaveRamsey<\/a>.<\/p>\n \t \t \t \t=htmlentities(get_the_title())?>%0D%0A%0D%0A=get_permalink()?>%0D%0A%0D%0A=htmlentities(‘For more stories like this one, be sure to visit https:\/\/www.eastidahonews.com\/ for all of the latest news, community events and more.’)?>&subject=Check%20out%20this%20story%20from%20EastIdahoNews” class=”fa-stack jDialog”> \t <\/p>\n