I am currently reading The Total Money Makeover by Dave Ramsey. I have been listening to his 1-hour podcast since June, and I really think he has got something there. Some big things that I have taken away from reading/listening are:
- Debt is not a finance problem, but a behavior problem; change the behavior to change your destiny. This boils down to discipline, personal discipline (ouch).
- Getting out of debt is simple, but not easy.
- The borrower is slave to the lender. Jesus said that a man cannot serve two masters; I want to serve Jesus only.
Anyway, I have only read about half of the book, but I am beginning to be fired up. I have talked to my wife about thinking about pursuing (does that sound noncommittal enough?) second, part-time j-o-b to bring in some more income. We have always (since “we” have been a “we”) had a budget, but we have always had the same budget-buster categories. Now we need to keep to the budget.
folleyball 
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September 25, 2006 at 3:40 pm
DEBTective
Bub, I’m proud of you for taking the first step toward deep-sixing your debt. Dave’s plan makes tons of sense, so you won’t be disappointed, baby. Keep going and you’ll connect with your cash in no time. Good luck, jack!
September 27, 2006 at 9:01 pm
Slammed! « folleyball
[…] Before “the drive” into work, I was planning on spending 50 bucks for LOF and tire rotation. Not only is all of this wonderful news not in the budget, but the cash-flow is pretty tight right now. We had just started the process of eliminating debt the Dave Ramsey way; man this puts a major kink in the system. Background on the car: this is a paid-for car; a 1995 Honda Civic DX Hatchback w/ 105,000 miles. The LORD provided us with this car our first year of marriage (that story to follow…). We have been planning on this car lsting us to either 200,000 miles + or when Jesus returns, which ever comes first. The blue book value of the car is $0, but driving it is better than a car payment. This car keeps me humble. […]