Our Debt-Free Scream With Dave Ramsey

We’re wrapping up a special Dave Ramsey Week here at T60 the best way possible… with our debt-free scream. All week we’ve been focusing on some EntreLeadership marketing lessons, but today it’s all about wrapping-up our debt-free story.

Mrs. G and I became debt-free (besides our mortgage) a couple of months ago. Over the last four years we have paid-off the lease on an SUV, all of our credit cards, business debt and a student loan. Let me tell you… that debt-free scream last Friday felt pretty good.

I blogged about our debt-free journey back in September, so I won’t rehash what’s already there. All we have left to pay off is our house and that’s next on the list. We are committed to being debt-free for the rest of our lives, and that includes our business.

Anyway, for me, one of the most inspiring parts of Dave’s radio show continues to be the debt-free screams. People who have sacrificed to win, call-in or make the trip to Nashville where the show is broadcast to share their story and proclaim they’re debt-free. Every time I heard one of those calls over the last four years I thought to myself… someday we’re going to do that. I was pretty determined.

Behind the scenes of our debt-free scream

Well, we got our chance last week. As a birthday surprise to me, Mrs. G contacted Dave’s team and arranged for us to do our scream there in Nashville the day before my birthday. Yeah, she’s pretty awesome.

We arrived at Dave’s studio which sits behind some glass in the lobby of Financial Peace Plaza… the home of his company. It was especially cool for me because they recently started broadcasting video of the radio show everyday live on the internet, so I spent most of our time there chatting with members of his video staff.

Our Debt-Free Scream with Dave RamseyWhen it came time for our scream they gave Mrs. G and I some headphones, and a member of Dave’s team occupied our daughter. The interview went by so fast. It was nearly 9-minutes long, but it felt like just a couple of minutes. We both had things we wanted to say and failed to talk about.

Mrs. G wanted to mention that in addition paying off our debt, we managed to pay for our wedding with cash as well as the medical expenses associated with the birth of our daughter. I wanted to talk about how paying off our debt has completely changed our outlook on money, and how we don’t plan to change the frugal lifestyle we’ve grown comfortable with.

Despite that, we were both happy with the interview, and the actual debt-free scream was fun. Dave came out to the lobby a couple of times while we were there, so we got some photos with him and chatted for an another 5-minutes or so.

My Nashville takeaway

It was great to meet Dave and thank him personally for the financial plan that has put us on solid ground, but that’s not what the trip was about. It was really a stepping stone to the next phase of our lives. I feel so fortunate that Mrs. G and I were able to start our marriage working this plan together. I think it has only strengthened our relationship, and we now know that we can tackle any challenge that comes our way.

Was it tough? Yes. Did it take a long time? Yup. Was it worth it? Totally.

We’ll look forward to another trip to Nashville after we pay off our house and finish Baby Step 6.

–Tony Gnau

Tony Gnau is a three-time Emmy-winning journalist. He is also the founder and chief storytelling officer at T60 Productions. T60 has won 12 Telly Awards for its work over the last eight years.