Suze Orman Show: Would Disney Approve or Deny?

[ZipADeeSarah]

You have to remember that people like Suze Orman are preaching mainly for the benefit of people who are either extremely fiscally irresponsible or broke. Not all financial advice applies to everyone; it should be tailored for the individual. While her advice was appropriate to me when I was in college and married to a deadbeat who would buy magazines and cds instead of paying the heating bill, it is not now. Her main audience is people who consistently spend more than they make, probably not even balancing their checkbooks, and then can't understand where all the money goes. For me, her style and advice gets on my nerves. However, I'm sure there are people out there who never learned financial common sense who need to be yelled at and given the "tough love." There are SOME universal truths when it comes to money, but not everything she says falls under that umbrella.

 

[Zummi Gummi]

I enjoy her show, and think a lot of her advice is quite sound (particularly when she says you need to have a 6 month "emergency fund" available should you suddenly lose your job).

That being said, I vehemently disagree with her about taking vacations, for the reasons mentioned above. It's not good sitting at home every night eating Ramen noodles until you're 65. You've got to get out and experience the world.

My philosophy has always been, if I can't pay off my vacation in 6 months (the amount of time you get interest free on the Disney Visa), then I can't afford it. To date, because I'm fiscally responsible (certainly not because I'm rich), I've never had to deny myself a trip.

 

[Crockett]

I tend to believe that life is a journey and you need experiences along the way that make life fun. Trips, eating out, family time, can all cost money but I think are worth it as long as your responsible financially.

^I like this. Makes more common sense than a lot of Suze's show tips. Be responsible, but don't be in a bubble.