I highly recommend him. I actually just bought his system (years ago now) online and went through it by myself, without going through the actual classes. You get all the videos and can download them for future review, which is great. I was too impatient to go through one video a week, and just crammed through it in a week or two - which is not necessarily for everyone!
Anyway, one of the shining stars of his system is the zero based budget (give every penny a job before you have it), the envelope system (can be done with cash or checking accounts or a combination) and right sizing your expenses to your income and vice versa. I never followed his investment advice, so I can't speak to that. We did find great value in his system, though and he has really high energy and is a great motivator, as well as just a lot of plain old common sense that he is good at explaining.
I actually started teaching my kids money management when DD was 11 and DS was 8. I opened actual checking accounts with debit cards for them, set up an "envelope" check register for them and gave them a monthly "paycheck" that was unrelated to chores or behaviors of any kind. They were then responsible for their clothes, lunch money, hair cuts, birthday gifts for friends, giving 10% to a charity, entertainment, etc. We still paid for camps, clubs, sports, etc - I just wanted them to learn to deal with the regular ongoing expenses.
They quickly learned that if they bought that $70 shirt they REALLY wanted, then they would run out of money fast! They both really have a good grasp on money now, DD did right from when she moved out after high school. Another thing that I didn't expect is that they both will call me if they can't decide something or aren't sure if they are doing it right. When DS first moved out on his own he called me in a panic from a grocery store, wanting to know what foods to buy to feed his high metabolism on just the $200 a month in his budget for food! That's Dave Ramsey in action in a young person right there.
Another really great tool is the software YNAB - which stands for You Need A Budget. It is a zero based budget finance software that is inexpensive and they have a lot of videos and tutorials, as well as a pretty great user forum. It actually shows you what every penny in your bank accounts or cash is supposed to be used for! So, if you have a "sinking fund" for car repairs that you put $50 a month into, you can actually see at any point in time how much money you have available. Then, if you have say a $380 auto expense and you only have $300 in your sinking fund, you have to look at all your other budget lines and see where you can "steal" some money. It also is a good way to let you know if you are budgeting enough for that expense, which is a good reality check.
I love the combination of Dave Ramsey and YNAB - and it's a great feeling when the winter utility bills come in (sometimes triple what they are in the Summer) and the money is just sitting in there waiting for that high bill! That's what sinking funds are all about, you put the same amount of money into each one every pay day, and let the expenses come when they will.
Sorry, budget nerd here! Good luck!
