I watch Suze orman - what do you think about her?

[marywantsmoney]

Okay I'm new to this whole actually caring about money thing. Haha most people my age just blow it on whatever. What I've been doing so far is watching the Suze Orman show and I just joined this forum. I've probably watched 15 episodes of Suze. She's pretty 'in my head'. Is this a good thing? Does she say anything that may be a little crazy?

Should I keep following the Suze train or is Dave Ramsey or some one else better? Thanks, everyone!

[phantom]

I've watched Suze Orman about as much as you have, so I don't have a strong opinion on her. She seems to throw out a lot of reasonable rules of thumb. I've listened to Dave Ramsey more. I don't agree with him completely, but I don't think following his advice is a bad way to get started. Dave Ramsey is all about the one-size-fits-all personal finance plan. If you want a simple, step-by-step approach to money, he's your guy.

When you're just getting started, I don't think there's anything wrong with picking a personal finance guru that resonates with you and just following what that person says to do for awhile. If someone is telling you to pay attention to your spending, avoid high interest debt, practice some delayed gratification, save money, and spend less than you make, you're unlikely to regret listening. I think it's more important to find a way of approaching money that you'll actually start following than it is to find the perfect system right off the bat.

Over time, if you continue to enjoy learning about personal finance, I think you'll come to form your own opinions and come up with a system that works really well for you. One nice thing about this forum is that you get to hear from people with a variety of approaches to financial issues.

[disneysteve]

Dave Ramsey is mainly about getting on a budget and getting out of debt. His plan for that stuff is pretty solid. I don't agree with his views on credit but that's personal preference. I would NOT pay any attention at all to his investment advice. That's an area he really should stay out of.

Suze Orman is a good all-around guide. You can learn a lot about proper money management by listening to her and reading her books. Again, I don't agree with her 100% of the time but she gives solid advice.

Never follow any financial "guru" blindly though. On numerous occasions, I have heard each of them give advice that was factually incorrect - not just something I disagree with but information that was just plain wrong. So read all you can. Ask questions places like this forum. Don't do anything that doesn't make sense to you or that you don't fully understand. And don't do anything just because some talking head on TV or the internet said to.

[ExcuseMyIgnorance]

The 'Can I afford it section' is awesome!

I love her personality. That's probably why she has the show. She's not exactly well-educated in the topics of personal finance. I too have heard her say things that are just plain wrong. You think they would have a CFA or someone look through the film before blasting it out on CNBC.

[sblatner]

I love Suze Orman. I also don't agree 100% but I think she has lots of good things to say and really gets you to think. I also love hearing other people's stories. Makes me either think I'm doing well or makes me want to change what I'm doing. I think you should continue to watch as you will learn a lot!

I think she has a new daily show coming out next year.

[Fishindude77]

I think she's cool.
Love that section of her show where she does the APPROVED or DENIED deal. Can't believe some of the knuckleheads that call in ...... "I make $38,000 per year, have $30,000 in college loans, two car payments, a $150,000 mortgage balance, no savings and some credit card debts ...... Do you think it would be OK to spend $3,000 on a new TV?

[JulieAlbright]

I think of Suze Orman pretty much what I think of every self-help guru.

Watch and read them all, and figure out how to determine what their best advice is ….. vs what advice is more so-so or worse and probably more about making them money than actually helping. Remember this, they are ALL salespeople. That might be really nice salespeople who are pitching a good product, but their main objection is still to get money from you while your main objective is to find the BEST USE of your money.

Don't buy any of their books or other items until you first read them for free from the Library and KNOW you believe that information is worth your money. Don't take any of their classes or sign up for any of their seminars until you KNOW they have good stuff to teach you. Just because somebody is on TV or on the radio doesn't mean they are the best thing going all the time.

Go find the personal finance section at your local library and read them all. Then get a few more from inter-library loan and read them too. Then Question, Question, Question everything you read. Finance is not a religion. You don't have to worship or devote yourself to any of them. You can have your own opinions. Take what works for you and throw the rest away. Build your own wealth of knowledge and learn to rely on yourself to recognize the best decision and path.

[disneysteve]

I think she's cool.
Love that section of her show where she does the APPROVED or DENIED deal. Can't believe some of the knuckleheads that call in ...... "I make $38,000 per year, have $30,000 in college loans, two car payments, a $150,000 mortgage balance, no savings and some credit card debts ...... Do you think it would be OK to spend $3,000 on a new TV?

I used to wonder about those calls. Then I learned that some of those people call in purely to hear themselves on TV. They know the answer to the question. Don't forget - it's an entertainment show. There needs to be some fun stuff on there. If everyone who called was financially secure and making reasonable purchases, what fun would that be to listen to?

The way I learned this was when someone I know called in. I didn't know about it in advance but saw the show and recognized her voice (and the "Anna from New Jersey" intro). I spoke to her later and said she knew she'd be denied but just wanted to be on the show.

[cashisking500]

Welcome to the forum, marywantsmoney!

Personally, I'm more of a Dave Ramsey guy, I listen to his show most days of the week. I think I favor him mainly due to the simplicity of his plan. I don't, however agree with everything he says. For instance, draining your emergency fund down to $1,000 to pay off debt seems crazy to me and certainly would keep me up at night.

I think there are good principals to be learned from Dave and Suze both. I appreciate Dave's passion to get rid of debt and I think Suze's 6+ month emergency fund advice is sound.

The key is for you to listen and find a plan that makes the most sense for you. That's why they call it PERSONAL Finance.

Also, there are some extremely financially savvy folks on this forum. People like disneysteve and others can teach you a lot.

[wincrasher]

I like Suze and the advice she gives. Bear in mind, her background is the stock market and making investments. She has a knack on how to pick apart an investment and put it in terms you can understand.

So I think she can be helpful on setting an investment course. I think she also has a more balanced approach to money, that people are more important than things or money. That real life sometimes gets in the way. There is good debt and bad debt. That you have to assess and manage risk.

Ramsey is a completely different animal. To him all debt is bad. There is no assessment of risk - you'd never take any debts or any risk for any purpose. You'd really never take a risk to better your situation. Just pay down debt and save your money in simple financial instruments. Some people's situation is so bad, that really is the course for them. If you tend to have a pessimistic view, Dave's advice is probably for you.

If you are more of an optimist, then Suze probably fits you better.

[scfr]

I believe there is something to learn from many "financial gurus" but I think it would be a good idea to sit down a read a good basic personal finance book all the way through. That will give you a basis for filtering and applying what you hear from other sources. My personal favorite is "Making the Most of Your Money Now" by Jane Bryant Quinn but "Millionaire Teacher" by Andrew Hallam is another good one and is an easier read.

As far as Suze Orman goes, my favorite thing about her is her mantra of "people first, then money, then things" although in my household it is "people & pets first . . ." Stuff is just stuff. Money is what gives you real financial independence & security, not stuff. The reason for working, earning, saving, and managing finances is for the people we love (which includes ourselves). Suze's mantra is a good reminder to align our finances with what we really value.

[disneysteve]

I think Suze's 6+ month emergency fund advice is sound.

Actually Suze preaches an 8-month EF, not 6.

Just pay down debt and save your money in simple financial instruments.

That's not what he preaches at all. Just the opposite, in fact. He advises investing 100% in growth stock mutual funds. That's as risky as it gets without branching off into less mainstream stuff. Of course, that's also why he says you should expect a 12% return.

[FLA]

I believe there is something to learn from many "financial gurus" but I think it would be a good idea to sit down a read a good basic personal finance book all the way through. That will give you a basis for filtering and applying what you hear from other sources. My personal favorite is "Making the Most of Your Money Now" by Jane Bryant Quinn but "Millionaire Teacher" by Andrew Hallam is another good one and is an easier read.

.

I love Jane Bryant Quinn, I can't remember the name of her book at that time but I read one that clocked in at 800 pages when I was 20. I went slow, and worked on setting up a personal finance plan based on her, as well as some others', advice. I personally, did not get a lot out of reading the DR books (I read maybe 3 and stopped), I did not have debt so it felt like a lot of reading for things I already did and my investment approach does not follow his. Once I was all set up, I eventually started reading John Bogle books and those by the Bogleheads, very helpful and confirmed I was on the best investment path for me (which is different for each person)

[BudgetPronto]

She was fun to watch at first with family, expensively her "Can I afford it?" segment. But it's all fun-and-games.

[scfr]

I love Jane Bryant Quinn, I can't remember the name of her book at that time but I read one that clocked in at 800 pages when I was 20. I went slow, and worked on setting up a personal finance plan based on her, as well as some others', advice.

It may have been "Making The Most of Your Money" which has been updated to "Making The Most of Your Money Now." I read the "older" version back in my 20's and give the advice I garnered and used from that book a tremendous amount of credit for setting me on a good financial path. It is definitely a hefty read, and therefore it's not for everyone, but for those willing to put the time and effort into reading & applying the advice it can be a real life changer.