Take Back Your Money in 2026

17 Jan 2026 · 1 h 1 min · 26 chapters

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In short

The Ramsey Show: Take Back Your Money in 2026

Episode Overview In this special bonus episode of *The Ramsey Show*, titled "Take Back Your Money in 2026," host Dave Ramsey, along with Jade Warshaw, discusses practical ways to regain financial control and overcome debt. The episode emphasizes the importance of budgeting, understanding financial principles, and taking actionable steps towards financial stability in 2026.

Key Themes and Discussions

Introduction

  • Setting the Scene: Dave addresses the audience at the Ramsey Event Center in Franklin, Tennessee, introducing the topic of financial empowerment.
  • Personal Anecdote: Dave reflects on his experiences in 1982, feeling overwhelmed by financial challenges, akin to what many young people feel today.

Common Financial Myths

  • Noise and Chaos: Acknowledges the overwhelming negative noise about the economy, high prices, and financial despair, similar to the experiences of past generations.
  • Hope Stealers: Identifies individuals and media perpetuating feelings of hopelessness regarding financial success and the American dream.

Personal Stories of Financial Success

  • Dave's Journey: Shares his rise to wealth through real estate, followed by a fall due to bad decisions, and ultimately learning from these experiences.
  • Encouragement to the Audience: Urges listeners to reject negativity and embrace the possibility of financial success through disciplined habits.

Misconceptions About Money

  • Interest Rates and Inflation: Debunks myths that current interest rates and inflation are worse than historical averages, providing statistical context.
  • Credit and Debt: Critiques the idea of using credit cards for points, highlighting the dangers of accumulating debt.
  • Budgeting Stigma: Emphasizes that budgeting is not just for the poor; 93% of millionaires practice budgeting.

Budgeting and Financial Planning

  • A Proven Framework: Introduces the concept of a detailed, realistic, and flexible budget and emphasizes the importance of tracking expenses.
  • Three Steps to Financial Control:
  • Identifying Your Why: Understanding personal motivations for financial change.
  • Creating a Working Budget: Outlining precise income and expenses to avoid overspending.
  • Following a Proven Plan: Adhering to the seven baby steps to financial freedom.

The Importance of Action

  • Baby Steps Explained: The seven baby steps include saving, debt repayment, emergency funds, investing, and ultimately building wealth.
  • EveryDollar App: Promotes the use of the EveryDollar app for budgeting and financial tracking, emphasizing its user-friendly interface and personalized recommendations.

Real-Life Success Stories

  • Audience Testimonials: Real stories from audience members who have successfully paid off debt and transformed their financial situations illustrate the effectiveness of the principles discussed.

Conclusion

  • Final Encouragement: Dave emphasizes that financial success is attainable despite current economic challenges if individuals commit to sound financial practices.
  • Call to Action: Urges listeners to take charge of their finances today and to utilize tools like EveryDollar for ongoing support.

Key Takeaways

  • Reject Negative Narratives: Do not succumb to the overwhelming negativity surrounding financial prospects.
  • Budgeting is Essential: Successful financial management starts with a practical, well-structured budget.
  • You Can Do It: Personal commitment and consistent effort can lead to financial freedom, regardless of current circumstances.
  • Utilize Available Resources: Leverage technology and personal finance tools like the EveryDollar app for guidance and management.

Closing Thoughts The episode serves as a motivational call to action, encouraging listeners to take back control of their finances and pursue a prosperous future by implementing sound financial strategies and rejecting the narrative of despair.

Written by AI. May contain mistakes. Listen to the episode to check what was said.

Chapters

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Larry's Story and Current Economic Challenges

0:50 to 3:30

Dave narrates Larry's struggles with the current economic climate and feelings of hopelessness.

“Larry's 22 years old, one year out of college.”

Historical Economic Context

3:30 to 6:40

Dave discusses historical economic data, comparing today’s challenges with past statistics.

“By the way, my name is David Lawrence Ramsey III.”

Credit Card Debt and Misconceptions

6:40 to 9:20

A critical look at credit card debt and common myths surrounding it.

“Interest rates in 1982 were 17.66 % for a house.”

Budgeting and Millionaire Statistics

9:20 to 11:20

Dave shares insights from a study on millionaires and the importance of budgeting.

“Buying a car without a loan is impossible.”

Debunking Financial Lies

11:20 to 14:05

Dave challenges common financial advice and misconceptions about achieving financial success.

“And you did it yourself, your first generation.”

Overcoming Lies About Debt

14:05 to 14:31

Learn how people can break free from the belief that paying off debt is impossible.

“And yet, people stand on the stage in the lobby of Ramsey Solutions every week and scream, I'm debt free, because they paid off their student loans.”

The Path to Wealth

14:31 to 16:00

Discover how personal experiences and challenges shaped a journey to financial success.

“There's always been something holding people back.”

Finding Hope After Financial Ruin

16:00 to 18:29

Understand the importance of resilience and faith in bouncing back from financial loss.

“And I remember standing in the shower, losing everything and losing my hope yet again.”

Rejecting Pessimism and Embracing Opportunity

18:29 to 19:46

Recognize the power of positive thinking and taking action in financial matters.

“The proof text of people out here in the middle of this changing their lives right in your midst every day says they're wrong.”

Introducing Jade Warshaw

20:03 to 20:57

Learn about Jade Warshaw's background and her expertise in money management.

“The pastor that led me to the Lord and baptized me, Brother L.H.”
Show all 26 chapters

Taking Control of Your Financial Future

20:57 to 24:15

Jade shares her journey and practical steps to regain control of finances.

“Sit down, sit down, sit down, sit down, sit down.”

Learning to Navigate Financial Storms

24:15 to 28:00

Understand the significance of being proactive and prepared during financial challenges.

“So I'm going to tell you three things that Sam and I did to take back control of our money.”

Confronting Economic Realities

28:00 to 29:05

Learn how the speaker transformed frustration into motivation during a recession.

“and he ended up talking about real estate in the midst of a great recession.”

Recognizing Cycles of Economic Hardship

29:05 to 31:04

Explore the cyclical nature of economic downturns and the importance of preparation.

“to what I'm going to call probably the most righteous jealousy anyone could ever have.”

The Power of Choice in Financial Planning

31:04 to 33:05

Understand the crucial choices in financial planning and their long-term impacts.

“You never, you know, you never paid off the debt.”

Crafting an Effective Budget

33:05 to 36:30

Learn the essential elements of creating a budget that works for you.

“For those of you watching online, maybe it's your first time hearing it.”

Implementing Proven Financial Plans

36:30 to 38:40

Discover the seven baby steps to financial freedom and their significance.

“Number three, you guys already know what this one is.”

Overcoming Challenges in Financial Journey

38:40 to 42:04

Learn how to persist through difficulties in your financial journey and remain focused on your goals.

“But really, what I'm trying to get you to is the point of acceptance.”

Taking Back Your Money: The Challenge Ahead

42:04 to 46:46

Learn how to tackle your financial challenges and budget effectively.

“Because you feel like you want to fall out, don't you?”

Understanding Margin: Breathing Room in Your Budget

46:46 to 48:24

Discover the concept of margin and how it can free up extra money.

“It's one-time margin and monthly margin.”

Personal Stories of Financial Transformation

48:24 to 50:18

Hear real-life examples of how budgeting and commitment led to financial success.

“I listen to folks on The Ramsey Show every day who have experienced it.”

Live Testimonials: Real People, Real Success

50:18 to 51:22

Listen to testimonials from individuals who turned their financial lives around.

“It's so freeing and it's just, I feel like the way we were meant to live.”

Dave Ramsey's Journey: From Struggles to Success

51:22 to 54:54

Learn about Dave Ramsey's personal financial journey and the principles behind his teachings.

“But you know, we got to bring it back to the man himself, Dave Ramsey.”

The Future of Financial Peace: Using EveryDollar

54:54 to 56:01

Explore how the EveryDollar app can guide you in achieving financial peace.

“And so people come up sometimes, they say, Dave, you changed my life.”

The Best Time to Start Today

56:01 to 57:08

Learn why today is the best day to start taking control of your finances.

“The price is actually less today for every dollar than when we launched it.”

Hope and Desire in Financial Success

57:18 to 59:35

Understand the importance of hope and desire in achieving financial goals.

“When the noise and the chaos and the Debbie Downers and the hope stealers steal people's hope, it makes their hearts sick.”
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Transcript

Automatic transcript. May contain errors.

0:02Brought to you by the EveryDollar App. Start budgeting for free today. Please welcome to the stage Dave Ramsey!

0:14What's up?

0:19How you guys doing? Wow.

0:34Well, obviously, obviously we're having a party here at Franklin, Tennessee in the Ramsey Event Center. And welcome to all of you here in the audience, and welcome to all of you at home that are watching all over the world. Yeah, we're glad you're with us. Thanks for hanging out with us. Welcome to Take Back Your Money 2026. Yeah. Yeah.

0:59Let me tell you about my friend, Larry. Larry. Larry's 22 years old, one year out of college.

1:14He's walking along the sidewalk on a cold winter's day, kind of like maybe today.

1:25He looked up at the house in front of him on that street he was walking on, and he thought to himself, I don't think I'll ever be able to get one of those.

1:37I think the housing market has left me, my generation behind. House prices are the highest they've ever been in American history, he thinks to himself. Interest rates are the highest they've been in a decade or maybe ever. Car prices? Have you looked at a car?

2:09Have you tried to buy groceries after you pump a tank full of gas? Have you looked at the pump prices?

2:18Then he turns on a screen and a talking head tells him how bad it is. He changes the channel and another talking head tells him there's an easy get-rich-quick way to get around all of these problems that are facing. And he's beginning to feel the hope drain out of his body.

2:44Doesn't feel like this president can fix it. Doesn't feel like the last president can fix it.

2:53Is the system broken? Are the glory days all behind us? Are we stuck?

3:06Will I be able to work my way through this? Is the great American experiment over? The great American dream unattainable for somebody like me, Larry thinks?

3:19A lot of noise, a lot of chaos out there coming into his ears, a lot of opinions.

3:29Does that sound familiar?

3:37By the way, my name is David Lawrence Ramsey III. That was 1982, and I'm Larry.

3:52It's easy to feel like the deck is stacked against you. We've heard it in every generation, and we hear it every day. There's always been a hope stealer out there. There's always been someone telling you that it can't be done. There's also someone always telling you there's a shortcut that's a lie based on greed and deception. There's always been a huckster. And there's always been a naysayer and a negative ninny. Most of them are in your family.

4:26We hear it every day. House prices are through the roof. inflation's killing the American dream, the job market. You know you can't get a job in America today. And if you did get a job, AI'd steal it from you. Wages are stagnant. Tariffs are toppling the entire economy. The voices, the loud, the tick-tock, the chaos, the white noise of negativity. It's always been there, but it's really loud right now. Have y 'all noticed? so much noise it can feel hopeless, like dreams are not attainable anymore. And yet, I keep running into people that are doing it anyway.

5:18They just won't buy the noise, the chaos, and the lies, and the negative ninnies, and the hope stealers. They just refuse. I don't know whether they're just just wired different or where they got a different piece of information. I don't know what happened, but something happened. They said no. When I was 22, I said no. And I went and started buying and selling real estate and I got rich. I'll tell you about that a little bit later. Didn't work, but I worked once. The lies and the bad advice are everywhere out there. Lie, mortgage interest rates and inflation are crippling us. They're the highest they've ever been.

5:57Are you hearing this on these news channels? Are you seeing this on the ridiculous made-up stuff on your Instagram reels, where you're death scrolling into oblivion? And it's just not true. I mean, you need to check your trauma against your facts and your drama against your facts. Inflation in 2024 was 3.4%. Inflation in 22 was 6.2%. In 1982, inflation was 7.4%. And in 1980, when Larry was 20, it was 12.4 % and had been double digits for almost the previous 10 consecutive years. Interest rates in 1982 were 17.66 % for a house. Today, we're bouncing down there next to the bottom of five for a 15-year fixed rate as of this moment today.

7:06Not hardly 17. Lie. You can't live on an average income in America today. the affordability crisis is real. Math says otherwise, median household income is now $83 ,000. And the average household expenses are 78. Bad advice. Put everything on a credit card so you can get your points and your cash back. Thank you, Samuel L. Jackson.

7:44What's in your wallet? Must be your money off them commercials, buddy. Samuel's got him a little red rag, and he just pulls around full of your money that he made off them commercials. Man. And by the way, the guy at Capital, one, he doesn't live in the lobby.

8:07he lives in a mansion that was paid for with your dollars because you had to put one of those things in your wallet because the truth is credit card debt's at an all-time high, 1.23 trillion. I've been cutting up credit cards for 40 years. I'm a failure, abject failure. This thing is still breaking records every year. You're still getting screwed by these people year after year after year, all in the name of airline miles that you will never use. It's ridiculous. You just keep getting screwed and screwed and screwed by the capital ones and the fifth thirds and the city banks and enjoying the ride and then wonder why you can't afford nothing.

8:52It's always funny to me too that we're petrified, frozen, paralyzed by a 5 % mortgage interest rate. We're blocked out of the market while we use a 22.8 % Citibank card. It's a bit illogical, people.

9:22Lie. Buying a car without a loan is impossible. I heard that when I was 16 and I'm older than dinosaurs. You're always going to have a car payment. You ever heard that one? Might as well just get you a good car. Thank God it's Friday. Oh God, it's Monday. I'm just stuck. I'm a cog in the wheel. You ever heard this stuff like Eeyore is your spirit animal?

9:56truth is a new car nowadays is forty two thousand dollars and the average car payments seven hundred and forty eight dollars on a brand new car twenty percent of the cars that left the car lot last month were over a thousand dollars a month i think we have an affordability crisis on our housing because we have a car payment in the driveway as you got screwed by city bank and Ford Motor Company. And they go down like a rock in value. That's where Chevy got that, like a rock.

10:35Lie. Only poor people do a budget. Ugh.

10:49Ramsey Solutions, we have a research department that did the largest study of millionaires ever done in North America. We studied 10 ,167 of them in great detail. When we discovered that 89 % of them became millionaires on their own with not the use of inherited money, they did not become millionaires because of inherited money, nine out of 10 millionaires. And by the way, there's about 26 ,000 millionaires right now, 26 million millionaires in North America right now. And a bunch of them are in this room, aren't you?

11:24And you did it yourself, your first generation. So if you determine that nine out of 10 millionaires did it themselves, then you need to ask, what did they do? So you can do what they did. Like, if you want to be skinny, ask skinny people what they did. it. It won't involve donuts, right? So let's talk to somebody that's winning about something and study what we in business would call best practices, right? So we talked to these millionaires and we said, how many of you do a budget? 93%. When you ask the general public, how many of you do a budget? it. I'm broke. Don't ask me these questions. It's under 50%.

12:06So there's your little statistical analysis, cause and effect, correlation causation, if you will, if you're doing research, right?

12:19Wow. Bad advice? Set up an LLC and run all of your personal expenses through it. You can write them off. No, you can't. That's straight up illegal. You can only deduct business expenses. Well, it's a business. No, it's not a business expense to buy your groceries. Your house electricity is not a business expense. Have you ever heard of a thing called an audit? They will come and take your stuff from you. They're called the KGB. I mean the IRS.

12:58Lie. I'll never be able to retire in an economy and in an environment like this. Truth is, if you invest from age 22 to age 67, just$70 a month, you'd have a million dollars at prevailing market rates. And if you wait till age 30, you can still do it if you invest only $170 a month. Some of you spend that on pizza.

13:28Bad advice. Start a small business for easy passive income.

13:36Been running a business for a lot of years. We coach about 10 ,000 small businesses. easy, passive are not words that come to mind. Scratch, claw, fight, roll in the dirt and the mud and the blood and maybe make a profit. That comes to mind. Easy and passive, bullcrap. Jeez, only on TikTok.

14:04Lie, I'll never be able to pay off my student loans. loans. And yet, people stand on the stage in the lobby of Ramsey Solutions every week and scream, I'm debt free, because they paid off their student loans.

14:25And Jade Walshaw will be out here in a few minutes, and she paid off over$280 ,000 worth. So just mic drop. Hello. Lie is the little man can't get ahead. There's always been something holding people back. There's always been noise and there's always been chaos and there's always been pessimists and there's always been negative ninnies and Debbie Downers. And there's always been legitimate roadblocks and hard things to get over. That's why when someone wins, we admire their success because we know they've sacrificed to do it, that they've scratched and clawed and put forth an unusual amount of effort to break away from the pack, the herd, to get out in front, to do something different.

15:12But something wired them up, something fired them up, something made them believe a different set of facts, a different set of beliefs, and they took a different set of habits and of applications and as a result got a different set of results instead of being like everyone else and being normal because normal just sucks. You don't want to be normal. I felt hopeless, Larry did, standing on the sidewalk. And then I started going, I think I can do this. And I started buying and selling real estate. And by the time I was 26, I had over$4 million worth starting from nothing. I did it stupid. I had way too much debt, about$3 million worth.

15:54We had a million dollar net worth. and we ended up losing everything over the next two and a half years. And a lot of you have heard that story. And I remember standing in the shower, losing everything and losing my hope yet again. First, I was hopeless. And then I busted through that, went and became a millionaire. And then I lost it again. And I lost my confidence. And I was so scared I couldn't breathe. And I didn't what I was going to do. And I really did feel victimized by the banking system and by the IRS, and it seemed like everything was stacked against me again. And then again, I realized the real problem wasn't all that.

16:34The real problem was I had built a house of cards, and I shouldn't be shocked that it fell, that I gave them access to my life and let them screw me. I signed up for stuff I couldn't do. Just like people sign up for too much credit card debt, too much card debt, and too much student loan debt. Same thing I did, except I did it with business debt. I hit rock bottom. I could have stayed there. And again, I'm sitting around whining. Y 'all, I thought whining was a little known form of prayer. Y 'all ever whine?

17:16buddy of mine said you ought to you want some cheese with that wine he said you know you got enough lemons you probably ought to make some lemonade and stop your dadgum whining that's a good friend it'll call you out right i said all right and i was a i just met god i got to know him met him on the way up i got to know him on the way down and I started studying what the Bible says about money and it was common sense and I started applying it to our lives and I started working one little step at a time. Live on less than you make. Get out of debt. Have a plan. Be generous. Grandma's common sense and it shows up right there in the Bible.

Read the full transcript

17:55If you're sitting here and you're treading water and you're scared and you're facing your first hurdle like Larry or your second set of hurdles like me, like Dave after he went broke, I've done it twice. I'm so dumb, y 'all. I'm here to tell you, you can do it. You can do it. You can do it.

18:24A redneck hillbilly kid from Antioch, Tennessee can become a millionaire twice. You, for God's sakes, can do it once. Zig Ziglar said if you want something you never had you got to do something you've never done Culture's telling us it can't get better that you can get rich quick There's a shortcut or you're stuck and you need socialism your communist college professor is telling you you need socialism No, you don't you need the best time in human history in america Today you have the more opportunity at this moment to make more money than ever before at any time in history You have so stinking much freedom, if you'll turn off the stupid talking heads and the white noise and go be somebody, it's unbelievable what you can do.

19:17Stop listening to the hope stealers. They're wrong.

19:24They're wrong.

19:28the data says they're wrong. The proof text of people out here in the middle of this changing their lives right in your midst every day says they're wrong. Stop listening to them. It's time for you to take your money back. So my friend Jade Warshaw has written a new book called What No One Tells You About Money. It came out two days ago.

20:03I want you guys to go pick it up. Now, Jade has an unusual advantage. The pastor that led me to the Lord and baptized me, Brother L.H. Hardwick, used to say, a man with an experience is not at the mercy of a man with an opinion. jade has an experience she's been there done that and got all the colors of the t-shirts she knows what she's talking about and she's good at this craft y 'all are going to enjoy this welcome jade washall

20:57All right, all right, all right. Sit down, sit down, sit down, sit down, sit down. Man, you guys are rock stars. That was like, I felt like I was coming out to the WWF. I was ready. That's awesome. Man, it is so good to be on this stage. I remember when I was on the other side of this thing. Matter of fact, some of you guys watching on live stream, I remember sitting in your shoes just waiting for an event like this because I needed it. I needed to lap up as much of the inspiration as I could. And so, man, it's not lost on me to stand up on this stage today in this situation. It's an honor. I'm grateful.

21:37I'm grateful for each and every person in this room. Let me start by saying that. But if you're watching on the live stream today, we're talking about taking control, taking back control. And like Dave said, I know something about that. My husband, Sam, and I, some of you know this story, some of you don't. We got married one week after college graduation. And it was a good time, but slowly but surely, we started to unravel the truth that we had$460 ,000 of debt. Yeah, you can react. It's a lot of debt. It's a lot of money. And this was the messed up part about it. The messed up part was we felt like we did everything right, right?

22:20You know, 18 years old, they said, you need to go to college. We said, yeah, we need to go to college. And culture said, not only do you need to go, but there's a student loan for that. You can go to whatever college you want, just take out a loan. And so we did. Then we graduated college and they said, good job. You graduated college. You got your big boy job. You deserve a new car. You need a car. And guess what? There's a loan for that. So we took the loans. We had a Hummer. H3, baby. Payment,$435. Woo! Let me tell you. Then culture said, hey, you work hard. You deserve a life that you can't afford, but we can help you fund it.

23:04Credit cards. Take out a few credit cards. We did everything right. Where did it get us? Pile of debt? Stress? Worry? Sleepless nights? Man. So if you're listening here tonight, if you're on the live stream and you're frustrated, man, I get it. I understand it. I've been exactly where you are. If you're overwhelmed, oh my goodness, I understand. But I also understand that many of you are on the cusp of making a big choice tonight. You've been listening to the things we teach. You've heard a little bit about it. And the truth is the ideas that we teach, the folks in this room know. The ideas that we teach, they are simple.

23:53right they're simple to understand yes simple to say but the truth is what's the truth they're hard to do it's tough right you guys know it's tough man but you can do it I'm living proof that you can do it not only can you do it it's worth it to do it you can absolutely positively take back control of your money yeah you can

24:23I like you guys. I do. But you need a system. You need a system. And I don't have a whole lot of time. I can't belabor it tonight. So I'm going to tell you three things that Sam and I did to take back control of our money. It's going to work for you too. The first thing you need is a why. Okay? You need a reason why. I would call it a purpose to proceed. Like, why in the head, Jade, Am I going to go along with the stuff that you and Dave are teaching? Why would I do that? I know my why. Can I tell you my why? Oh, Lord have mercy. It was 2008 when Sam and I discovered our debt. And I don't know if you guys remember 2008, a little time I like to call the Great Recession.

25:07Oh, my goodness gracious. If you remember, let me paint you the picture. All hell was breaking loose. gas prices out of control, real estate bubble bursting, 401ks. People were literally selling off their 401ks at the bottom, just losing thousands, hundreds of thousands by the day. It was a hurricane. And Sam and I were right in the middle, just getting waylaid, just getting pummeled by the storm. Now, let me just explain this for a second, because I'm a Florida girl. I don't know if you noticed. I have a Florida girl, okay? And in Florida, we have hurricanes, okay? I'm not talking about the football team.

25:49We have storms. And with a hurricane, a lot of people get it twisted. They're like, oh, the worst part of the hurricane, you don't want to be in the eye of the storm. Like, no, no, no, no. With the hurricane, you know, you've got the big storm swirling around, then you've got the eye in the center. The worst part of the storm is this area, if you can see right in here, this inner area, just before you get to the eye, it's the most severe weather. Sometimes there's tornadoes that drop down in that area. Terrible. That's where Sam and I were. The worst. $460 ,000 of debt. Now, don't get it twisted.

26:27Some of you watching online tonight, maybe even in this room, you're in a situation where you're like, hey, where I'm at, Jade, it's sunny, it's 70, it's calm. That's what the eye of the storm feels like. Everything looks good. The birds are chirping, sky is blue, but you and I both know if you're in the eye of the storm, if the wind blows just a little bit to the left or to the right, you lose a job um wife gets a diagnosis somebody steps off the curb breaks their leg next thing you know they're on disability all it takes is one thing the wind to blow just a little bit and you go from sunny and 70 to being waylaid pummeled you know what i'm talking about i'm gonna be honest with you when it comes to a storm a financial storm an economic storm The place is not to be is not on the edge like Sam and I were.

27:28The place to be is not in the middle, in the eye of the storm. The place that you want to be above the storm. You got to get above the storm.

27:46I'll tell you the first time I ever heard that concept. This is story time right now. First time I ever heard the concept of flying above the storm in 2008, back when it was just Dave Ramsey on the show. It was called the Dave Ramsey Show. I was listening to the radio, and Dave was on, and he was talking about, somebody had called, and he ended up talking about real estate in the midst of a great recession. And he said, you know what, for me, I'm not really feeling the effects of the recession because I positioned myself above the storm. Right now, real estate is cheap, so I'm buying it up. And I'm listening to my radio like, what?

28:22What is this man? He is sitting in his air-conditioned studio with his UT Vols Tumblr talking about buying up real estate. Y 'all know what I'm talking about. Because it's cheap. I was mad. Yes. Here I am getting knocked out, and he's saying it's easy to buy up real estate. I got mad. And do you want to know what happened shortly after that? The old brain clicked on, and I got smart. I said, wait a second now. If he's above the storm, it's because he worked to get there. It didn't just happen. It wasn't luck. He worked to get there, and I very quickly went from being angry to what I'm going to call probably the most righteous jealousy anyone could ever have.

29:11I was like, I hear what this man is saying, and I want it. I want it, and I can get it, but I'm going to have to work hard and do something I've never done before to get it, to fly above the storm. I made a decision that day with my husband, Sam, who's back there somewhere. He's in here somewhere. I said, I never want to be in this situation again. I don't know if you guys have noticed this stuff, but these economic hardships, these downturns, it's all like cyclical, right? I'm thinking back like, all right, you got like the 2000s when it was like all the dot-com stuff and Y2K, right? You had that.

29:50Then it was like 9-11. And then we came to a great recession. And then we had COVID. Have you noticed it's really bad for a while? And then it gets good. And then we forget and it gets really bad again. And then we forget and it gets good, right? It's cyclical. And I said, man, I don't know what it's going to be, but something's going to happen again. And I never want to be getting waylaid by the storm. I want to get above the storm. And sure enough, yeah, a while later COVID happened and we were able to fly above the storm just like Dave Ramsey.

30:30And so you have a choice today. There's really only three options. Time's going to pass anyway, right? Right? It's going to pass. Because when we started getting out of debt. It was 2008. We did our debt-free scream in 2017. The time is going to pass, and you have three options. You could be the same. Let me tell you, being the same is not an option. I don't have time to talk about it, but look up the parable of the tenants. Staying the same is not an option. A couple years passes. You never, you know, you never paid off the debt. You're still leasing a car, still living paycheck to paycheck, still arguing with your spouse about the same old arguments.

31:13That's for the birds. That's ridiculousness. You have opportunity in front of you. Staying the same is not an option. I feel like I'm talking to my kids right now. No, sir. You could be worse off. Worse off, you never paid off the debt, and before you know it, you didn't see it coming, but you got laid off, and now you're having to borrow on credit cards to make ends meet, and you're having a hard time keeping up with the mortgage and you miss a few payments, and then you miss a few more, and suddenly your house is at risk, you're thinking about filing bankruptcy, oh my goodness, it's worse. Or, or maybe today, tonight, something clicks upstairs like it did with me, and you go, you know what, I'm going to do this thing.

32:07And you make a choice. And the day after that, you make another choice. And the day after that, you make the next right choice. And they start compounding on each other. And the time passes. And before you know it, it's two years later, five years later, 10 years later. You don't even recognize who you used to be because you're free. You don't have payments. You haven't had payments in a minute. You're free.

32:36That's what I'm talking about. Let that be your decision tonight. Staying the same isn't an option. We got to get above the storm. All right. I spent a lot of time on that, but that's the reason why. All right. That was number one. Number two is you need a budget that actually works. All right. A budget. And I say a budget that actually works because I see what some of you guys are doing. When you're calling into the show, I'm like, that's your budget? Is it working? You need a budget that actually works. Let me tell you what I mean. For those of you watching online, maybe it's your first time hearing it.

33:09Hey, a budget is simply a plan for your money. It's deciding every single month. This is how I'm going to spend every single dime. And I do a new one every single month because every single month is different. Now, I won't hold you on this, but a really good budget that actually works needs to be three things. It needs to be detailed, realistic, and flexible. Let me explain that real quick. Detailed simply means I'm not guessing, all right? Folks call on the Ramsey Show all the time. I say, well, how much do you make? Well, up, up, up, up, up.

33:44My guy. You got to know how much you make, okay? So I'm going to log into the HR portal. I'm going to pull up the statement. I'm going to find out exactly how much I make. Then I'm going to be detailed about writing the expenses out. everything I could possibly think to spend money on, from groceries to grandma's birthday, I'm putting it in the budget. Detailed. Somebody say detailed. Detailed. Yes. Flexible. No, no, no. Let me go to realistic next. Realistic. Oh, yeah. Yes. Realistic. Okay, I'm going to call some of you guys out. It's 2026. It's expensive out there. Groceries have gone up. Gas has gone up.

34:24and some folks are still putting on their budget, family of four are saying they're going to spend$400 on groceries. Listen, you can't be a family of four trying to squeeze into a single and ready-to-mingle budget. It's not going to work. You've got to put real numbers in the budget so that you'll actually stick to it. You're not always going over in the red. Realistic matters. Final thing, it's got to be flexible. Flexibility is simply a matter of awareness. You can't change your budget. You can't adapt your budget to what's happened in the month if you're not looking at your budget. You got to log in and look at the thing.

35:00It's in your pocket. Every dollar's in your pocket. Look at it. It'll help you see, hey, I said I was going to spend$800 on groceries. I'm at$900, and it's only the 15th. I better slow down, right? That's how you're flexible. Then you can say, you know what, I'm about to go over. Let me pull from this other less important category, like, I don't know, movies, entertainment. Let me pull from that, move it over here, and make it work out. Don't just go in the red continuously. Okay. Detailed, realistic, flexible. And like I said, we do a new one every month for those of you listening for the first time, because every month is different.

35:36Now, I don't want to hear it, because I can already hear the naysayers. Day to budget, that sounds like a lot of work. In 2026, the budgets are digital. All right? I don't want to hear it because back in the day with Sam Warshaw and I, it was on paper, okay? It was a paper budget. There was no other thing to write on except that little bitty ledger in the back of the checkbook. You guys don't understand how old I actually am. I can see you. I'm 42.

36:11Ah, the ledger in the back, and it had the little triangle that you had to fit all the numbers in. Don't miss a decimal point, all right? Don't accidentally add a zero. That's an argument right there, okay? It's digital. I don't want to hear any excuses. Get your budget on point. All right, you have a why. You have the budget. Number three, you guys already know what this one is. You need a proven plan, all right? You need a proven plan that works. Obviously, I'm going to tell you about the seven baby steps. millions upon millions of people have used this plan and I have a feeling the folks in this room y 'all know it by heart so you're gonna help me go through it right now baby step one for those listening for the first time baby step one you're gonna get a thousand dollars save somebody say a thousand dollars baby step two you're gonna pay off all your debt using the debt snowball method everything but the house you're gonna do it off paid off using what Yes!

37:14Baby step three, we're saving three to six months of expenses in a fully funded emergency fund. How much are we saving? Three to six months. A. Somebody always has to add something at the end. Cut off. Next one, baby step four, we're investing 15 % of our income. I'll hit that one. Baby step five, we're going to put a little extra for the kids' college. Baby step six, we're putting extra, we're being intentional about paying off the mortgage. And finally, baby step seven, what are we going to do? Build up the debt! Yes! Clap that up.

37:59It's the plan Sam and I used to pay off$460 ,000 of debt. It's easy to say, but how many of you know, it's got a lot of nuance in it, doesn't it? It's a lot of nuance. I remember back in the day, I'd be like, okay, what was I supposed to do if I'm upside down? And what happens if I'm saving for the down payment, but I still need to save for the retirement, but it goes for too long? Like, I'm trying to think of all these things. And the only way I could do it was I'd have to, like, find an episode of the Ramsey show where Dave might have been talking about it. You don't have to do it that way anymore.

38:31Every dollar will walk with you. It's in your pocket. It will literally learn your circumstance and tell you what to do next. I'm going to talk a little bit more about that in a minute. but it's in your pocket. There's no excuse. Now, I know I've thrown a lot at you. It was a lot. We talked about a lot. We covered a lot, a lot of change. But really, what I'm trying to get you to is the point of acceptance. Because I get it. You're sitting there right now. You're like, okay, Jay, what do I need? Do I need a side hustle? Will I not be able to go on a vacation? You know, you're already counting the costs.

39:02Slow down and remember the why. The goal is to fly above the storm. Don't forget. Don't get spooked. The goal is to fly above the storm. You got to remember the why. And if I can get you to a point of acceptance to know, hey, journey's not going to be easy, but you can do it, I know you'll win. I know you will. Matter of fact, I think back to it's 2026. So technically it was 2024. I ran my first marathon.

39:33And you cheer about it now, but can I tell you the honest truth? The honest truth is I talked about running a marathon for a decade. For 10 years. For 10 years, I said, one of these days, I'm going to run a marathon. And one of these days, I'm going to do it. But there was always, always an excuse. Oh, I'm too busy. Oh, you know, I've got kids. You know, I got the mom bod. You know, I'm too busy at work and there's the fee to sign up. There was always an excuse. but it kept calling me. It kept calling. Can I tell you a secret? The conditions will never be conducive to do what's uncomfortable. I'm going to say it again because my guy over here got it.

40:22The conditions will never be conducive to do what's uncomfortable. Never. There's never an ideal time. And matter of fact, if there was, it would have been back then when I was skinnier and didn't have two kids and didn't have the mom bod. Right? It's not always going to be sunny in 70. Okay? The time for you to start the baby steps, yeah. The ideal time, it was probably before the divorce. It was probably before you lost your job. It was probably before the big move. but you're here now, today. So that means the time is now. The time is today. You gotta accept it.

41:10Hey, there's gonna be rainy days. There's gonna be days when your muscles ache. There's gonna be days when you don't wanna get up and do it. There's gonna be days when it feels completely thankless. There's gonna be days when you have absolutely no energy worn slap out. All right? You gotta keep going. Don't quit. Don't quit. Matter of fact, Galatians 6, 9 is my favorite scripture ever. It goes like this. I'm going to paraphrase it. But it says, let us not become weary and well-doing. Basically, don't give up on doing the right things. Because it says, at the proper time, at the right time, we'll reap a harvest of blessings if you don't give up.

41:50That's right, my guy. If you don't give up. Thank you.

41:59Some versions say, if you don't faint.

42:04Because you feel like you want to fall out, don't you? You feel like you want to fall out, but you can't. You can't quit. You can't tap out. You've got to accept the challenge. You must make the very intrepid decision to take back your money. Now, I just told you everything you need in order to do this. let me show you exactly what to do and how we're gonna help you make it happen with every dollar. Remember I was talking to you about the budget? Let me show you. If you haven't seen it, let me show you what it looks like. Now, at the top, just to get acclimated at the top, that's where the money goes that I told you to find out how much you make.

42:40Then you're gonna be detailed about everything on there. That's all the expenses, everything like that. Now, when you make your first budget, it shouldn't take long. Matter of fact, in the time it takes you to watch Is It Cake on Netflix, you should be done, all right? You should be done with it, just like that. And I'm not going to hold you with that, but that's the way the budget looks. Now, I told you every dollar was going to help you with the budget, but it's also going to help you with a personalized plan. Somebody say personalized plan. That means it's tailored to you. So when you get in there, it's going to start an onboarding experience.

43:11It's going to say get started. It's going to ask you questions like, hey, what's your priority with money? How often do you get paid? Do you have children? It's going to ask you all of these questions. And all of that is so it can synthesize it and say, okay, based on what you told us, we're going to give you a couple of recommendations. And if you do the recommendations, you're going to find margin. Margin, that sounds pretty good. Margin is extra money. Now, here's the thing. Average person gets eight recommendations. Eight. And what you need to know is at the end of each of those recommendations, cash money, right?

43:48It's finding you money, okay? And if you do them, if you do the recommendations, however many it gives you, the average person finds$3 ,015 in the first 30 days. I'm going to say that more clearly. $3 ,015 in the first 30 days. Somebody thought they heard$30 ,000 and was like, what? No. Not that. Never that. Margin. Extra room. Breathing. Space. peace. If you've never heard that before, you're like, Jay, what do you mean, margin? Think about like this. You ever got on an elevator, and when you first got on the elevator, it was just you? You're like, this is nice. Then people keep crowding on. More and more people before you know it, you're in the elevator like this, and you're like, oh my God, I can feel the guy's arm hair on me, right?

44:34The guy next to me, this guy's ate garlic for, you know, garlic for lunch. Terrible. You can't wait for folks to get off the elevator. Then as you go down, people start to crowd out. start to breathe again, start to move again. Same thing with your budget. When you started out, it wasn't like that. But over time, subscriptions added on, the Carly's added on, the HELOC added on. And before you know it, your budget is crowded out. There's no extra breathing room. It wasn't intended to be like that. All right. Now there's two types of margin that we're looking for. First off, one-time margin. Just what it says, you get it one time.

45:08That means he did some sort of act like you sold a vehicle or you sold off some stock. It brought you money one time. It was a one and done deal. Every dollar is going to help you find that. It's also going to help you find what we call monthly margin, which is exactly how it sounds. It means if you do an action once, you're still see the margin month to month. For instance, if we say, hey, cut down your grocery budget from$800 to$600, what's that make? $200 every single month that you do that action and extra margin. It's as simple as it sounds. Every dollar is going to show you how to do that.

45:44Now, here's the key. When it shows you the recommendation, you get a choice. Am I going to commit or am I not going to commit? Yep or nope. See right there? Commit. Click the commit button because there's, think about it. If the average person gets eight recommendations, if you only say commit to one of them, do you want to know what you're going to get? One eighth of the success. That's not good margin. You got to do all of it. You got to do all of it. And I know what you're thinking. Yes, it could be hard to change your tax withholdings because now you don't get the big refund check. And it could be hard to give up the trip to Hawaii or to sell the car.

46:20But hey, I told you before, this isn't necessarily fun, but this is what's necessary to fly above the storm, right? We're flying above the storm. That's the goal. So we got to commit and do this hard work, guys. Remember, people are finding$3 ,015 in the first 30 days. And I know you're thinking, hey, that's a little bit more than I make in a whole month. But remember, but it's first time. It's one-time margin and monthly margin. Don't forget that that's how they're getting the number, man. Okay? That's how it works. Now, I mentioned to you before, I said, hey, I want you going into the app because that's how we have a flexible budget.

47:02Remember I said that earlier, that awareness was key? There's another couple reasons I want you in the app. Number one, you got to track your transactions every single day. You spend money, it'll show you. And in real time, let's go through and track it so we can stay on top of it. That's so, so important. But probably what's the most important thing? The daily lessons. If you get in there, it's going to teach you the why behind the what. It's going to teach you the why behind the what. So you can understand. It's not enough. It's not enough for you to be like, hey, I'm going to do it because Dave said it.

47:36Or I'm going to do it because Jade said it. Or Rachel said it. That's not enough. That will wear off in like two seconds. You have to understand the why. It's a personal buy-in thing. It's the difference between you being like, yeah, you know, yeah, doc, I know. I need to stop eating sugar. And you actually understanding and doing the research and understanding what sugar does to your body, right? It's a big difference. The bridge between you saying, yeah, you're right, and you saying, you know what, that's right for me. That's what I'm going to do. It's personal buy-in. And you're going to find that in the lessons so that you're in control.

48:12We're not telling you what to do. You're telling yourself what to do. This is what I want to do because I know what the business is. I've experienced it for myself. I listen to folks on The Ramsey Show every day who have experienced it. but I want to show you some videos here tonight of some more folks that are just like you and just like me who have experienced it. So check this out. This is pathetic to say, but I'm sure others will relate. There was one day I was walking into Trader Joe's and right before I walked in, I looked online and I had$14 in my bank account. I find myself down to one income.

48:52It wasn't anything really that I could control, but I had to figure it out. We sold our paid-off minivan to get an expensive SUV. Brand new. And then our water heater broke. Then our air conditioner broke. And now we have$60 ,000 in debt. So I declared war on debt on July 4th of 2024. As soon as I started interacting with the app, I knew I had made the right choice. I finally felt like I had clarity. I had a solution. I had a plan. I was able to just plug in real numbers, see real data and real timelines, just little recommendations along the way. Before I knew it, I had freed up almost$500 a month.

49:38Wow. We ended up both getting 10-year-old Toyotas. I call her Budget Betty. I drive that thing around and I'm like, hit me. We just view, you know, cars different, what we have to buy, you know, the things that matter. I had financed my daughter's braces for like 18 months. I actually was able to pay those off in six months. Wow. The emotion behind it is excitement. It's hopeful. It's hard for a moment, but once it's over, it's over. And then you get to live in the new life that you've created. I tell people all the time, I don't know what I have been doing with my money for the last 39 years of my life.

50:13I've seen it work. I just had to commit to it and stick with it. After we completed baby step number three, we decided to save up money and we cash flowed a trip to Hawaii. Nice. It's so freeing and it's just, I feel like the way we were meant to live. We don't have to be slaves to the money that comes into our bank account. I'm sorry, I get very passionate about this. I love it. I get very passionate. I love it.

50:42All right, all right, give them a round of applause. Give them a round of applause. And, and, and, we actually have a couple of the folks that you saw in that video here tonight. We got the Morrison family up here. Guys, come over here and come and see me face that way so they can see you. So good to see you guys. Give them a round of applause. Did you guys take the trip to Hawaii? Yeah, they took a trip to Hawaii. Come on, man. That's so, so good. Man, we're rooting for you. We're so proud of you guys. Thank you for being here with us tonight. One more time. And we got Andy. Come on up here, Andy.

51:13You saw him. It's real. Clap it up. This is working for real people every single day. So good. Proud of you guys. Proud of you guys. All right, guys. That was so, so cool. But you know, we got to bring it back to the man himself, Dave Ramsey. Jade Walsh!

51:33Wow.

51:39Wow. So as I told you, we made a lot of money in the real estate business. and spent two and a half years of our lives losing it and got the opportunity to start over yet the second time. And what happened? Well, as I said, I met God on the way up. I got to know him on the way down. We started studying these biblical common sense principles and started applying them to our lives. And then people started asking me, well, how did you do that? How did you survive? How did you recover from that? Because we didn't exactly bounce back. When you fall that far, you don't bounce. It's more of a splat.

52:13And so we started crawling our way out and people saw we were surviving and that Sharon and I actually didn't kill each other. And because, I mean, you can have some good money fights, can't you? It's like, you know, yeah, we held on to each other, but it's just to get a better grip. Y 'all know what I'm talking about, right? Man. And we started applying these principles and they started working. We started sharing them, living on less than you make, following the baby steps, common sense practice. And then I started teaching it with a bad suit and an overhead projector. Y 'all remember overhead projectors, any of you?

52:48Y 'all look them up, those of you that are young. They're interesting machines, yeah. And then we took that material and actually did a videotape of it and put it on VHS tapes. Any of you remember those? Yeah. And we sent them to companies and churches all over America and classes were being taught everywhere and then we went to the DVDs. Yeah. And then we of course went to MP4s. Yeah. Wow. MP3 first and then 4 and online and the internet was invented and all these things happened. But through all of that, through all those decades now, about 10 to 15 million people have been through Financial Peace University teaching those lessons.

53:40And with 35 plus years teaching this stuff on radio and now podcast and now YouTube, we're now getting the third generation of financial peace babies through, and the Baby Steps millionaires are just rolling out everywhere because there's been enough time go by that these principles are really playing out in people's lives. And enough people have done it now that it's really not in question anymore. So we launched this budgeting app several years ago called EveryDollar that Jade was just telling you guys about. And we came up with the idea about five years ago to start integrating all of those financial peace lessons and all of that process into EveryDollar so that it leads you through the baby steps, makes you do the stuff in the baby steps the way we teach, just the way we used to do in those financial peace classes.

54:31We still have the financial peace classes too, but it's now a digital thing in your hand that coaches you, personalized coaching along the way. See, it's always been about how we can take the principles to people, whether it was an overhead projector or a VHS or a digital app. I don't really care. As long as I can get it to you and you can go change your life using the exact same principles that changed my life. And so people come up sometimes, they say, Dave, you changed my life. I didn't change your life. I wasn't even there. You did it. But I showed you how. I showed you the principles, and that's what we've woven into this app now.

55:05And here's what's happened. In 2025, in savings, additional savings, and or paid off debt, every dollar users had a change of position between those two numbers of$3.5 billion.

55:30See, I kind of got this weird idea that if we could make that$30 billion instead of$3 billion, we might change the whole economy, just you and me.

55:45I mean, what if most Americans weren't broke? This could be different. Yeah, that'd be kind of cool. You know the best time to plant an oak tree 50 years ago? You know the next best time? Today. You know the last best time to have started all this stuff was when you were 19, but you didn't do it. You didn't plant the oak tree either. So the next best time? Today's your day. Today's your day. We've invested a lot of time, a lot of money, and a lot of effort to make sure this thing works, and it works, and it will guide you, and it will walk with you, as if you had Jade or Dave or Rachel or any of us, George, in your pocket saying, don't do that, do this, don't do that.

56:28And here's the weird thing. The price is actually less today for every dollar than when we launched it. There's some inflation for you. Well, it's working, and the numbers are working, and we're making money, and we're helping you. So it seems like it's kind of a win-win. Why do we need to jack it up? I think this is fine with me. So go to your app store.

56:58Go to the app store, go to Google Play, and you can start a free trial today for 14 days on every dollar. And then this time next year, things could look completely different. So the moral of the story for tonight is what the Bible says, hope deferred makes the heart sick. When the noise and the chaos and the Debbie Downers and the hope stealers steal people's hope, it makes their hearts sick. Some of them are sad, some of them are angry when that happens, but it's all because their heart is sick, because they don't believe they can win anymore. It's been stolen, hope deferred. And that proverb continues and it says, but when desire comes, it is the tree of life.

57:49When desire comes, it changes everything. And desire comes when you start to believe some of the stuff we've been talking about tonight. Could it really be that Larry could become a millionaire and do it poorly and go completely bankrupt and get a PhD in DUMB? Could it be that Larry could do that and then start again? And with the very principles that Larry David Lawrence Ramsey III used to turn his life around, that billions and billions of dollars could be transformed into savings and debt reduction all across America because desire came to you. I think that could happen. And that's kind of the dream tonight.

58:32It's kind of what we want to do. It's why we had a free live stream to just encourage you because there's just no one out there doing encouraging right now. Everybody's whining and chaotic and crazy. And the sad thing is they're actually wrong. They're actually wrong. You can actually do this. And then I get to meet you when I'm walking through a restaurant someday or walking through an airport and we'll just go, yeah, I see you. You did it. Baby steps millionaire, baby. You did it. I'll get to see you and you'll go, yeah, yeah. I run into you everywhere, everywhere I go now. Literally all over the world, I run into you.

59:12In coffee shops, I run into you in restaurants, and you come up and you go, yeah, because desire came a few years ago in your life. And you believed and you decided, I'm not going to listen to the noise. Instead, I'm going to believe these common sense, God-based principles, and I'm going to apply them in my life in a very real, tactical, and practical way, and it changes everything when you do. Thank you, ladies and gentlemen. Good to be with y 'all.

From the publisher

💸 Start transforming your money today with EveryDollar!

In a special bonus episode from our recent "Take Back Your Money" livestream, Dave Ramsey and Jade Warshaw show you how to take your money from chaos to clarity so you can break free from debt and completely transform your finances in 2026.

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