Elections can be a stressful time, especially when it comes to financial concerns. In a recent video, renowned personal finance expert Dave Ramsey sat down with George Kamel to discuss his thoughts on America’s debt and how consumers can manage their finances during election season.
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Ramsey tackled the subject of financial anxiety surrounding elections and emphasized that while political outcomes can have some impact on people’s finances, they shouldn’t dictate personal financial success. Here’s what Ramsey advised to people who are concerned about the upcoming presidential election.
Don’t Place 90% of Your Financial Success Into a Specific Candidate
Ramsey stressed the importance of not placing the majority of your financial hopes on an election outcome. “The problem is that the candidate and the news media have convinced people that 90% of their future success is based on the candidate, when 90% of the individual’s success is based on the individual,” Ramsey said.
He went on to explain how he paid less taxes under President Trump but also didn’t go broke under President Biden or President Obama.
“I have made profit and made progress in the business under every administration, and it had nothing to do with them,” Ramsey said. “It had to do with the economy in general, which they don’t control … and it had to do with me and this leadership team here at Ramsey.”
His response falls in line with his standard advice that people should focus on what they can control, like budgeting and saving, rather than external factors.
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Focus On What You Can Control With Your Finances
In the video, Kamel noted that some people say they will leave the country if their candidate doesn’t win, but Ramsey said he has no plans to move, saying that he hasn’t seen an economy as strong as America’s. “I’ve yet to find an economic system that is even one-tenth as appealing as this one,” he said.
Instead of making drastic moves, it’s better to focus on what you can control. The key is to adapt and make the best of your situation.
One example of this is paying off debt, which Ramsey is an advocate of. Paying off debt requires discipline and sometimes saying no to immediate gratification.
Ramsey pointed out that many people’s financial issues stem not from external factors but from their unwillingness to have self-discipline in a culture where you can buy whatever you want. He added that there are people who want to just spend whatever they want to spend and not say no to themselves, thinking rules don’t apply to them.
He added that debt won’t go away by magic, but you can start to make progress once you work on a plan and make tough decisions that will be only temporary.
Editor’s note on election coverage: GOBankingRates is nonpartisan and strives to cover all aspects of the economy objectively and present balanced reports on politically focused finance stories. You can find more coverage of this topic on GOBankingRates.com.
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This article originally appeared on GOBankingRates.com: Here’s What Dave Ramsey Has To Say to People Who Are Concerned About the Election
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