'Preacher' Dave on dumping debt. . . . .

Since I've been sick for, oh, going on a week now, I've had a chance to catch up on some reading and CD's that have been languishing by the side of my bed.

Yesterday, I listened to Dave Ramsey's 'Dumping Debt plus Cash Flow Planning' CD. The first two CD's (in the three CD program) dealt with getting out of debt, and the last CD discussed budgeting.

After having read The Total Money Makeover and Financial Peace (both reviewed by Trent at The Simple Dollar), I was curious to hear what Dave sounded like 'in person'. Well, he sounds like a preacher, complete with the pregnant pauses, the dramatic enunciation, and southern accent!

The preacher aspect bugged me for a total of about 15 seconds, and then I started becoming inspired (all over again) to beat my debt, increase my savings, pay off my mortgage, and finally find financial peace! I could listen to these CD's over and over again, if only to remind me that IT (meaning financial independence) CAN be done.

The drawback of these CD's is that you really need to have read at least the Total Money Makeover before listening----Dave refers to his 'baby steps' and to other principles that are laid out beautifully in the Total Money Makeover, but he doesn't expand on them in the CD's. I almost felt like the CD's were created as a sort of advertisement, to entice listeners to sign up for the several hundred dollar Financial Peace University, which bothered me a bit. However, if you've gone to the local library and checked out his books, then I don't think there's a need to spend hard earned money hearing the same principles at your local church.

If you have a choice, read the Total Money Makeover, and then listen to this 3-CD lecture (probably both are available at the local library---although I had a good month's wait for the CD's). I would skip the book entitled Financial Peace, since it's just what Trent at The Simple Dollar calls a 'first draft' of Total Money Makeover.

And the best news? I'm starting to feel better!