Dave Ramsey's Financial Peace University:

Stop Being Afraid of Money! Dave is the single best source out there for explaining how this stuff works in simple - but very thorough - ways. His personal style of teaching even manages to make it a lot of fun. 

Having money or not is not a function of "luck." There are plenty of rich school teachers in the world. How? Because having money is not about how much you make....it's about habits, and knowing what winners know about where to put money. First and foremost, money grows when you invest it. You put it into things that earn compound interest, which is the same thing that makes your credit card bill skyrocket beyond what you actually "spent." That debt growth can work for you instead of against you if you'll take control from your creditors. Here's how:

Ever wonder why banks own all the big buildings; or how your wise grandpa who never earned more than $40K per year in his life travels the world and had all that money when he retired? Both examples are due to compound interest.

Interest Rate Calculator: This is fun to just play with. Input a number that you plan to invest and see how much it grows. Even a $100 investment at only a 10% growth rate turns into real retirement money. If you're smart, even with a modest income you can put away a big nest egg. But even a McDonald's cashier can put away something...even if it's just $5 here and $10 there...into smart places that will one day make him financially secure for life. So there's no reason for anyone to retire poor - or even live that way. Know too that a 12-15% (compound interest) return is a reasonable expectation for every ten year period in stock market history - even during the depression. Definitely play with this calculator before the next credit card - or financed - purchase you make. That's when the banks use this formula against you instead of for you. The earlier you start the better. Do the math yourself.  Financial Calculator  

I'm not selling anything here, so stop looking for a hook line. Yes, my wife and I have been to Dave's $35 one day seminar; but like most people who were there the tickets were bought for us by family who had done it already and lived the principles to great success.

If you are under 25, click here right now so you don't waste another second.

Financial freedom is second only to Faith on the list of common sense, simple things that I wish everyone in the world understood. People should not be allowed to graduate high school without knowing how money works. But even parents don't typically know how to teach kids - because they never got it either.

Have you ever wondered why some people who make a lot of money have nothing to show for it; but others who have small incomes live and retire VERY comfortably - and can handle any financial challenge? It's because wealth is about good financial habits and an understanding how money works - it's not about income. Here's how.

Interest Rate Calculator: This is fun to just play with. Input a number that you plan to invest and see how much it grows! Even a $100 investment at only a 10% growth rate turns into real retirement money. Anyone can put away $5 here and $10 there into smart places, so there's no reason for anyone to retire poor - or even live that way. Know too that 12-15% is a reasonable expectation for every ten year period in stock market history - even during the depression. Definitely play with this calculator before the next credit card or vehicle purchase you make - where the banks use this formula against instead of for you (ever wonder why they own all the big buildings?) Financial Calculator  

Unfortunately, your creditors know how money works - and they use the power of things like compound interest against you. That's why the average consumer is enslaved to them, and why banks own most of the tall buildings. They bought them with your money, because they had a plan for your money when you didn't. If you don't have a plan for each dollar you own, it will be owned by someone else soon. Learn the methods of your creditors and get things like compound interest working for you - rather than against you. That's what your grandparents knew, and what wealthy people do...it's part of how to get money working for you, rather than working for a paycheck. Investments are not complex, hard to understand, concepts...and they are not at all just for people who are making big money...they just require a small amount of explanation, and a handful of new habits. The skills you have acquired to do your job are likely to be far more complicated.

Dave uses common sense principles - rather than exclusive gimmicks or expensive products - to show people how to build financial security and the freedom that comes with it. He spells out how credit is not a "tool" that financially savvy people have to use. How our grandparents thought of all credit - even home mortgages - to be detestable bondage....they looked down upon people who got into such entanglements. He'll tell you straight up that what he is putting out there is nothing new or clever. It's simple wisdom - like most of the things that actually work - and it's about getting back to the basics.

Need an example of what you'll find at www.daveramsey.com ? Here's one: (Especially if you are under 20 years old, please know this ONE SIMPLE THING about money that can change your future....and your whole family tree

Compound interest can be your worst (credit) enemy or your best (investment) friend. Dave shows how to get it on your side, so you can know for a fact - rather than just hope - that you will not have to work at Wal Mart when you're 70. Did you know that with a standard 12% return on $2,000 invested when you are 17 - and never touched or added to again, compound interest turns it into $2,300,000 when you are 70. That's right....millions. If you are a young person, you need to know that the same $2,000 put away when you are 40 "only" turns into about $700,000. So please, hear the voice of regret from us who are your senior and do this now instead of buying that Camaro! And to those 40 year olds like me, don't despair too much at these numbers....we may have missed out on the biggest power curve by not starting earlier (you is, in fact, often wasted on the young), but these numbers can still set you up for life....especially since we can probably do much better than start with only $2,000.

 That's the thing banks know. It's why they give you credit cards, and why they own most of the big buildings. Get that concept working for you as an saver / investor so you can be at financial peace and have the freedom to do - and buy! - the things that you really want.