dave says
Featuring the advice of personal finance expert and best-selling author Dave Ramsey , the Dave Says column is filled with timely , relevant questions and answers taken from actual letters and calls on Ramsey ’ s radio program , The Dave Ramsey Show .
Dear Dave , I need your advice . I just accepted a new job in a field I love three weeks ago . Yesterday , I was recruited and offered a position by a huge company for the same kind of position , and they pay more than twice what I ’ m making now . I did not send in a resume , or fill out an application for the job that was just offered . They came directly to me , and it was a huge surprise . I don ’ t have a contract with my current employer , but they are good people and I want to handle things well and do the right thing . Can you help ? — Jenny
Dear Jenny , Long story short , I think you take the new job . Now , how do you handle this with your present employer ? With total honesty , respect and a lot of gratitude . Walk into your boss ’ s office , and lay out the whole situation truthfully . Let them know what has happened , how it happened , and while you feel awful about how things worked out , you had no intention of misleading them or causing problems . On top of all that , promise to do everything possible to make the transition as easy as you can .
In uncomfortable scenarios , it ’ s always a good idea to try to put yourself in the other person ’ s shoes . Let ’ s pretend you own a business , and you just hired a young lady . A few weeks later , someone comes in , completely out of the blue , and offers her more than double what she ’ s making with you . I can tell you what would happen at my company . I ’ d tell her to take it . I ’ m serious . I mean , as an employer I ’ m certainly not going to double her income that quickly . And while I ’ d be surprised , and a little disappointed , I ’ d be happy she has the chance to take such a big step up .
If an organization cares about its people , and one of those team members has the opportunity to significantly increase their income — and they ’ re not breaking a contract or promise in the process — this type of scenario is perfectly reasonable , even if it ’ s a little inconvenient for the current employer in the short term . I know it ’ ll be uncomfortable for you , Jenny , but they can ’ t realistically expect you to pass up a chance to do what you love at double-plus what you ’ re making now . Congratulations ! — Dave
Dear Dave , I ’ m 32 and a teacher . My house is my only debt , and there ’ s $ 55,000 left on my mortgage . My parents always taught my brother and I about saving and being smart with money . The other day , mom and dad offered to pay off the rest of my mortgage by loaning me the money with a very small interest rate . I know you don ’ t like the idea of mixing money and family , but considering I have a great relationship with my parents , what do you think about this offer ? — Lacy
Dear Lacy , I ’ m going to make a suggestion before saying don ’ t do this . See what I did there ?
But seriously , I ’ d recommend they just make the money a gift and reduce your portion of any later inheritance by that amount . By doing this , you could help reduce the possibility of your brother feeling slighted in any way .
I would never loan my kids money . And here ’ s why : One hundred percent of the time , the Bible says the borrower is slave to the lender . That doesn ’ t exempt parents and their kids . No matter how nice your masters are , you ’ re still a slave in this kind of situation — and you ’ ll feel it . Family dinners and get-togethers are different when you ’ re sitting down to eat with your masters — your creditors — instead of just good ol ’ Mom and Dad .
Don ’ t get me wrong , I ’ m not suggesting you should act ungrateful that they offered a loan instead of a gift . It ’ s a generous thing either way . But if they don ’ t want to go the gift route , that ’ s fine . You have a good job , a nice home , and you ’ ll be okay . The thing is , I just wouldn ’ t want to take a chance on straining a great relationship — or even ruining it — because of money .
Lacy , you ’ re 32 , a teacher and a homeowner . In my mind that says a lot about you , your maturity and your work ethic . That being the case , I get how this could be a weird thing for you to do . So , I ’ m going to give you an out : Blame me . Just tell them you talked to me , and I said don ’ t do the loan idea . Tell them I gave you the make-it-agift-tied-to-the-inheritance idea .
If your mom or dad wants to talk to me about things , that ’ s fine . I ’ ll be kind to them . But I ’ ll tell the truth like I always do . — Dave
Dave Ramsey is CEO of Ramsey Solutions . He has authored seven best-selling books , including The Total Money Makeover . The Dave Ramsey Show is heard by more than 13 million listeners each week on 585 radio stations and multiple digital platforms . Follow Dave on the web at daveramsey . com and on Twitter at @ DaveRamsey . www . kidslifemagazine . com
23