Why I DON’T Follow Dave Ramsey’s Baby Steps

The one personal finance class offered at my high school centered HEAVILY around Dave Ramsey.

To be completely honest, I didn’t click with him at the time, and years later, I still don’t.

I completely recognize that thousands (maybe even more than that) have found success using Dave Ramsey’s methods. And if it works for you, that’s great!

Keep going.

There are just aspects of his plan that don’t work for me and my lifestyle.

Below are some of the reasons I don’t follow Dave Ramsey’s Baby Steps.

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I don’t want to be “gazelle intense”

Listen, we aren’t promised tomorrow. And as great as it sounds in theory to be debt free in a couple of years by giving up all of the extras in my life and throwing everything that I have at debt, that just isn’t realistic for me.

I don’t want to wait until I’m debt free to go on vacation, or to spend money on dates with my partner.

And I most certainly don’t want to wait until I’m debt free to start saving for retirement or to treat myself occasionally.

I understand that numbers wise, it doesn’t make sense to have debt that accrues more interest than I would make in a retirement account.

But for me, it’s that peace of mind that I am still helping my future self.

There are things in life that I just don’t want to give up if I don’t have to, even if it’s just for a little while.

What happens if I don’t make it to debt freedom?

Will I have wanted to spend the next few years of my life running toward paying off debt, or balancing debt payoff with the other things that are important to me?

I CAN’T do cash envelopes

Now from what I’ve seen online, this isn’t necessarily a MUST with Dave, but it is something that he talks about.

Trust me, I wanted to be a cash only spender, and use cash envelopes, so badly.

I STILL carry around my empty cash envelopes in my wallet specifically made for carrying cash envelopes.

But my reality is that I just don’t use cash.

Most of my purchases are online, I HATE going inside to pay for gas, and trying to figure out how to stick my change and cash back into my wallet at the cash register with a line full of people waiting behind me gives me intense anxiety.

Now I keep my sinking funds categories separate online while keeping the money in the bank.

I use credit cards (and probably always will)

I love credit cards!!

*gasp*, I know. That’s pretty much a sin in Dave’s book.

But stick with me because I definitely have had my share of bold decision making with credit cards. In fact, I racked up over 20k in credit card debt in just a few years.

So when I hopped on the budgeting train, I SWORE to never touch a credit card again.

Now that I’ve learned more, I’ve realized that there are amazing benefits to credit cards, if you can resist the urge to carry a balance.

I get tons of cash back with my credit cards.

I found a system where I get free money by opening up credit cards about once and year, meeting the minimum spend balance, and reaping the rewards.

Let me highlight that these rewards are NOT worth it if you carry a balance.

So if you think there is even a chance that one day you might be tempted, then I would recommend staying away.

But for me, I have my credit cards under control with YNAB, and I feel confident that I am using them for my benefit, not the other way around.

I cherish my Starbucks Coffee runs

Under Dave’s plan, I would cut out ALL unnecessary expenses.

Again, great in theory, but not sustainable for me.

I truly love everything about going to Starbucks, getting a drink, enjoying it, and sharing that time with other people.

Have I cut back since budgeting? Absolutely!

Did I give it up entirely? No way.

This ties back to the first point, I don’t want to wait to be debt free to live my life. I believe that it’s not either/or, it’s both/and!

It’s possible to save money AND pay off debt.

I can enjoy Starbucks once a week AND also throw some extra money at my student loans.

You can go on vacation AND contribute to your retirement fund.

I believe that you should (to an extent) care about your credit score

Dave is all about never borrowing money for anything, from anyone, for any reason, ever again. So he doesn’t focus much on your credit score.

Even if you follow this (and manage to never have to take another loan out for anything) there are still so many instances where your credit score will matter!

The place my partner and I rent at right now requires a credit check for their application. T

his is one of the most affordable places to live in our area.

The reality is, without good credit, we may have been forced into a more expensive option.

You may also benefit from higher credit if you own a small business, or want to take out a mortgage one day.

I’m not here to judge what you want to do with your money.

I just know from experience that outside of loans, your credit score can still matter.