The Total Money Makeover: Difference between revisions

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== Introduction ==

 

'''''{{Tooltip|The Total Money Makeover}}''''' is a personal-finance book by radio host {{Tooltip|Dave Ramsey}} that lays out a behavior-first plan—popularized as seven “{{Tooltip|Baby Steps}}”—to budget, eliminate consumer debt, and build an emergency reserve.<ref name="LoCPubDesc">{{cite web |title=Publisher description for The total money makeover : a proven plan for financial fitness |url=https://catdir.loc.gov/catdir/enhancements/fy0614/2003014115-d.html |website=Library of Congress |publisher=Library of Congress |access-date=10 November 2025}}</ref><ref>{{cite news |title=10 online courses, books, and podcasts that can help you master your money |url=https://www.businessinsider.com/guides/learning/online-courses-books-personal-finance-money-saving |work=Business Insider |date=14 December 2020 |access-date=10 November 2025}}</ref> First published in 2003 by {{Tooltip|Nelson Books}}, the first edition runs 223 pages (ISBN 978-0-7852-6326-5); a revised-and-updated edition followed in 2007, and a 20th-anniversary updated-and-expanded edition arrived on 14 May 2024.<ref name="OCLC680152673">{{cite web |title=The total money makeover : a proven plan for financial fitness |url=https://www.worldcat.org/oclc/680152673 |website=WorldCat |publisher=OCLC |access-date=10 November 2025}}</ref><ref name="Marmot2007">{{cite web |title=The total money makeover: a proven plan for financial fitness — Rev. and updated (2007) |url=https://boulder.marmot.org/Record/.b16762733 |website=Marmot Library Network |publisher=Boulder Public Library |access-date=10 November 2025}}</ref><ref name="ThomasNelson2024">{{cite web |title=The Total Money Makeover Updated and Expanded |url=https://www.thomasnelson.com/9781400342549/the-total-money-makeover-updated-and-expanded/ |website=Thomas Nelson |publisher=HarperCollins Christian Publishing |date=14 May 2024 |access-date=10 November 2025}}</ref> The book uses a “financial fitness” frame and plain, prescriptive prose, with sequential chapters such as “Save $1,000” and “The {{Tooltip|Debt Snowball}}” guiding readers through the steps.<ref>{{cite web |title=Table of contents for The total money makeover : a proven plan for financial fitness |url=https://catdir.loc.gov/catdir/toc/ecip045/2003014115.html |website=Library of Congress |publisher=Library of Congress |access-date=10 November 2025}}</ref><ref name="LoCPubDesc" /> It has been an enduring bestseller—{{Tooltip|Thomas Nelson}} reported in August 2017 that it had spent more than 500 weeks on *{{Tooltip|The Wall Street Journal}}* lists and had sold over five million copies, and the title continued to chart on {{Tooltip|ECPA}}’s overall bestsellers into 2025.<ref>{{cite news |title=The Total Money Makeover Hits The Wall Street Journal Bestseller List More Than 500 Weeks |url=https://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/the-total-money-makeover-hits-the-wall-street-journal-bestseller-list-more-than-500-weeks-300498767.html |work=PR Newswire |date=2 August 2017 |access-date=10 November 2025}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |title=Christian Bestsellers, October 2025 |url=https://christianbookexpo.com/bestseller/ |website=Christian Book Expo |publisher=Evangelical Christian Publishers Association |access-date=10 November 2025}}</ref> Backlist momentum has been notable—*{{Tooltip|Publishers Weekly}}* recorded more than 33,000 print units in a single week in September 2015, and the book still appeared on a 2021 *{{Tooltip|The Wall Street Journal}}* weekly chart.<ref>{{cite news |title=The Weekly Scorecard: Tracking Unit Print Sales for Week Ending September 28, 2015 |url=https://www.publishersweekly.com/pw/by-topic/industry-news/bookselling/article/68195-the-weekly-scorecard-tracking-unit-print-sales-for-week-ending-september-28-2015.html |work=Publishers Weekly |date=26 September 2015 |access-date=10 November 2025}}</ref><ref>{{cite news |title=Bestselling Books Week Ended August 14 |url=https://www.wsj.com/arts-culture/books/bestselling-books-week-ended-august-14-11629400183 |work=The Wall Street Journal |date=19 August 2021 |access-date=10 November 2025}}</ref>

 

== Chapters ==

 

''—Note: The above summary follows the {{Tooltip|Nelson Books}} revised and updated edition (2007; ISBN 978-0-7852-8908-1).''<ref name="Marmot2007" />

 

== Background & reception ==

 

🌍 '''Impact & adoption'''. The book appears in public-sector and academic financial-literacy collections, including the {{Tooltip|American Library Association}}’s guide and university/library resource pages.<ref>{{cite web |title=Books – Financial Literacy in Public Libraries: A Guide for Librarians |url=https://libguides.ala.org/finra-ore/personalfinance/books |website=American Library Association |publisher=American Library Association |date=13 June 2025 |access-date=10 November 2025}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |title=U.S. Bank Financial Wellness Collection |url=https://library.park.edu/financialwellness |website=Park University Library |publisher=Park University |date=8 August 2025 |access-date=10 November 2025}}</ref> Local governments and libraries have used it in community finance programming—for example, {{Tooltip|Cumberland County, Virginia}}, offered copies as part of a four-week financial management class in 2022.<ref>{{cite web |title=Board of Supervisors Minutes, 8 February 2022 |url=https://cumberlandcounty.virginia.gov/AgendaCenter/ViewFile/Minutes/_02082022-525 |website=Cumberland County, Virginia |publisher=Cumberland County |date=8 February 2022 |access-date=10 November 2025}}</ref> Commercially, its long-run presence on {{Tooltip|ECPA}} and *{{Tooltip|WSJ}}* lists has kept the “{{Tooltip|Baby Steps}}” vocabulary visible in workplace and church-based financial-wellness contexts.<ref>{{cite web |title=Christian Bestsellers, February 2020 |url=https://christianbookexpo.com/bestseller/all.php?id=0220 |website=Christian Book Expo |publisher=Evangelical Christian Publishers Association |access-date=10 November 2025}}</ref><ref>{{cite news |title=Bestselling Books Week Ended August 14 |url=https://www.wsj.com/arts-culture/books/bestselling-books-week-ended-august-14-11629400183 |work=The Wall Street Journal |date=19 August 2021 |access-date=10 November 2025}}</ref>

 

 

{{Youtube thumbnail | miTcoAQBMlA | Animated summary of the key ideas}}

{{Youtube thumbnail | 3b4vmHZdKxc | Oprah on ''Total Money Makeover'' with Dave Ramsey}}

 

{{Rich Dad, Poor Dad/thumbnail}}

{{The Richest Man in Babylon/thumbnail}}

{{The Millionaire Next Door/thumbnail}}

{{The Psychology of Money/thumbnail}}

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== References ==

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