Update From Dave Ramsey On The Economy

3 posted on March 3, 2009

POSTED IN: Blog Posts, Culture

I’m not an economist and I don’t pretend to know what they’re talking about. I like to think of myself as a reasonable, level-headed person but it’s easy to get carried away in all the doom and gloom we hear about in the news right now.

I just had a conversation with a friend who told me they pulled hundreds of dollars out of their bank in cash because they had heard that the FDIC had up to 99 years to pay you back in the event of a bank crash (not true by the way). People are losing jobs left and right and many are painting the future with pretty bleak colors.

That’s why I appreciated Dave Ramsey’s perspective from his most recent newsletter.

I’m tired of hearing all the gloom and doom coming from the media about the economy and unemployment—I bet you are, too! Let’s take a minute to look at the true reality of the situation and what we can do about it.

Yes, many people have lost their jobs and houses. You may be one of them. But guess what? People have lost their jobs and houses even in a bull market. About 93% of people are still employed. That is pretty good! I was alive in the 1970s when unemployment hit double digits, and we’re nowhere near that right now! I’m not making light of the fact that some people are struggling; I’m just putting the situation in the proper perspective.

Even though you may be currently unemployed, that doesn’t mean you have to participate in the recession. People like me who have chosen to not participate acknowledge the reality of a slow economy and suffering people. However, we have decided that we’re not going to form our lives around the negativity coming out of the media and government. We’re intensifying our efforts and going to have the best year of our lives in spite of things slowing down.

Some people who find themselves unemployed will go into new careers or start their own businesses where they have the best year of their lives—professionally, financially and emotionally. Their current job losses are actually blessings in disguise. They believe this and are formulating game plans based on it. I guarantee there are men in their garages right now starting their own mechanic shops. The next Mary Kay Ash is writing up a business plan for new products she’s just created. College students are developing “the next best thing” in their dorm rooms as you are reading this. This is reality!

So think about your skills and interests. How can you leverage those passions into something you enjoy doing every day while earning money for it? If you haven’t lost your job but dread going to work, maybe it’s time to fire your employer and go in a new direction. When you have a game plan for your money and career, you will have a sense of empowerment because you aren’t a slave to the lender (or employer).

When employers start hiring because they believe their businesses will grow, recessions end. Many who have stopped hiring a healthy amount have been paralyzed by fear. They’ve lost hope. People who continue going about their lives in normal ways (without being irresponsible and buying stuff they can’t afford) believe in the future. It’s called hope.

You can have fear or hope. It’s your choice.

I choose hope.

I don’t know about you but I need people like Dave to help me keep my hope afloat in this sea of pessimists. We can choose to see our current economic situation and long for the “good old years” of financial security or we can see the blessings in disguise and choose hope.

By the way, if you’re facing uncertainty with your job or have already lost it, be sure to read Dave’s “Seven action steps if you’ve lost your job (or think you might)”

** Update ** Beginning March 14, Lifechurch.tv will have Dave Ramsey speaking for a 3-week series on finances. You can watch the messages live online at http://www.lifechurch.tv. (Thanks Emily for this info)

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This entry was posted on Tuesday, March 3rd, 2009 at 9:34 am and is filed under Blog Posts, Culture. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.

15 Comments

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March 3, 2009

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1 Nick said:

I think this whole situation may help open our eyes to how great we have had it in the US for so long. I appreciate the wisdom of Dave Ramsey. He’s a smart cookie

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March 3, 2009

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2 joseph said:

Brad,

Funny…I posted this a few days ago as well. I got this and thought it was really good plus LOVE Dave Ramsey.

What I don’t understand is why our politicians don’t bring people in like Ramsey, Gates, Godin etc to help provide advice. Instead, we have lawyers and politicians, (politicians who are lawyers) making the decisions…crazy.

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March 3, 2009

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3 Juli Jarvis said:

Thank you — this is good. All three of our kids are struggling to figure out their future careers, although they’ve completed: 1. Masters in Music Composition; 2. Commercial Airline Pilot; 3. Aerospace Engineering. Well qualified, but hard to find jobs. I only pray God will lead them into the proper locations and jobs.

Juli Jarvis’s last blog post..How Would You Spend $32 Million?
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March 3, 2009

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4 Brad Ruggles said:

@Nick – Yup, smart cookie.

@Joseph – I think it would be awesome to have a Ramsey or Godin in Washington as an adviser!

@Juli – Wow, speaking of smart cookies it sounds like you have 3 of them! I’ll be praying for good jobs for them too.
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March 3, 2009

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5 holly said:

Great reminder! I am so sick of turning on the news and hearing about the latest drop in the Dow. Yes, it is real, but only focusing on the negativity will bring us down even lower. I also choose hope and will not look to my government to pull us out of this mess – that is the job of every individual citizen being accountable and taking responsibility for their spending habits.

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March 3, 2009

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6 Rachel said:

GOTTA love some positivity!! Thanks for sharing!

Rachel’s last blog post..All for a measly $25.
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March 3, 2009

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7 Beth Taylor said:

I love Dave’s phrase “I have chosen not to participate in the recession”…so great! It is an abundance mindset versus a scarcity mindset. He is great.

Beth Taylor’s last blog post..Making Room For Creativity-Part 1
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March 3, 2009

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8 Brad Ruggles said:

@Beth – Yeah, he said something similar to that at last year’s Catalyst. Love it.
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March 3, 2009

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9 Beth Taylor said:

Oh, and FYI….my 16 yr old son saw your blog on my laptop and read the whole Mountain Dew post of yours. Yep, you are a hero. My husband and I are going to have to keep an eye on him now…

Beth Taylor’s last blog post..Making Room For Creativity-Part 1
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March 4, 2009

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10 Rachel Rowell said:

He is so right on. He is telling the truth when he says that many who have lost their jobs have actually been given a blessing in disguise. Sometimes hard times propel us into greater things that we wouldn’t have ventured outside of our comfort zones to do otherwise.

I hate it when people look at us with pity because they know Anthony got laid off. We’re like, don’t feel sorry for us. Certain parts of it are hard. But other than that, it’s been the best thing that could have happened to us. It’s caused our faith to increase HUGELY, and us to become innovative in finding ways to replace the lost income.
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March 4, 2009

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11 Brad Ruggles said:

@Beth – I love being a hero…not quite sure if that post was hero-worthy! I want to go on record right now that I deny any responsibility for anything he does to you guys!

@Rachel – You’re right. The tough times try our faith and build our trust in God. Not a cause for pity, but rejoicing that God has everything under control. Praying for you guys!
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March 5, 2009

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12 Liz McIntyre said:

Hurrah! I love that way of thinking! I agree that the doom and gloom of the media is contributing to people participating in the recession, rather than helping to stimulate the economy where they have the affordable ability to do so.
For instance, I own a store that has been in business since 1809 (200 years!)…..and although I have written to The Today Show numerous times, as I believe this would be a wonderful human interest story, they choose to report on stories like some girl drinking the diamond ring out of her milk shake. Or, how one should hold onto every penny they have because the sky is falling.
I am happy to report, people are making wise choices, and they are still shopping at this old store. In fact, a gal came in yesterday and said…”I am here to spend some of my tax return money!”
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March 5, 2009

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13 Emily Stringer said:

Hey starting this coming weekend, Lifechurch.tv is having Dave Ramsey give a 3 week lesson. It will be great and you can view it on the http://www.lifechurch.tv website.

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March 5, 2009

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14 Brad Ruggles said:

@Liz – Wow, owning a store since 2009? That’s amazing by anyone’s standards! Congrats!

@Emily – Thanks for this info! I just added it to the post. Thanks for passing this along.
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March 6, 2009

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15 Weekend Update | joshbrickey.com said:

[...] This post from Brad Ruggles I thought put the current economy in perspective. [...]