1 Thing Keeping My Husband from Wanting to be Debt Free

How to Get Your Spouse on Board with Dave Ramsey’s Baby Steps

My husband was not on board with getting out of debt and living debt-free because of the fear of going without. It was the sacrifice that made him leery. He did not want to go without EVERYTHING he was used to, and I get that. I did not expect him to. We sat down and talked about how much money each of us wanted per week to make getting out of debt tolerable. In the end, an extra $25 a week was all it took to get him on board. So, what was the1 thing keeping my husband from wanting to be debt free…

No One Wants To Go Without

Let’s talk about how to get your spouse on board with being debt-free or the Dave Ramsey plan if that’s your course. You may not be able to agree for one reason! Just one!

There was one reason in the end that my husband, Chad, was not entirely on board with becoming debt free, and it was a $25 per week cost to get him on the Ramsey wagon. The biggest concern for my husband getting on board was that he felt like he was going to experience this significant loss. It was a loss of things, treats, and a little bit of freedom. He felt like he was going to be going without for a very long time. We didn’t know how long it was going to take to get out of debt at the time. The goal was to just get out of debt. But, to get out of debt, we needed to watch every dollar we were spending. I think Chad looked at watching what you’re spending as me being controlling. This was my idea after all, but I was not into controlling what he was spending his money on. I just wanted to cut back on what we could to get out of debt as quickly as possible.

Where Was Our Petty Cash Going?

Chad and I were both spending more than what we thought we were each week on small purchases. He was a gas station munchies guy and liked to eat out for lunch during the week. I was a terrible grocery/meal planner and made several trips to the grocery store each week. Going to the store after work with hungry kids was not good for the wallet. Chad and I each had a certain amount of “allowance” if you will, but we were spending more than our allowance. I was seeing that in small credit card charges and ATM transactions, and this overspending had to be addressed immediately. It was the little bleed that affected the rest of the budget and the amount we were able to put towards our debt each month.

How to Stop the Petty Cash Bleeding

So here’s what we did. I asked Chad to really think about his weekly spending, and tell me how much money he needed each week. I emphasized not too short change it. Do not make the amount lower than you really think it is. That will not benefit anyone.

What I found really funny about this is after I asked him to give me that amount, he came back to me with this starter sentence. “You’re not gonna be happy about the number I’m going to give you.” I was a little nervous with that starter, but I really needed him to be conservative and realistic with the number for our budget to work.

Was his amount that different from what we were allowing for yet going over? No, not really. Chad was spending around $75 a week when he thought it was $50. I was spending $50 a week thinking it was only $25. Having these actual numbers really helped us to complete our budget and finding out how much money we had to work with to get out of debt. We each took an additional $25 per week and reconfigured the budget.

Over time we both spent less. We both became intentional with our money. I try to grocery shop once a week by myself, and Chad takes lunch at least 3 days a week. This alone was a $50 savings per week for us.

Feeling Relieved

For Chad, knowing that he was going to have what he needed each week financially really helped relieve that anxiety of going without. Once we reconfigured our “allowances” life was better, and Chad was ready to come on board.

Talk to your spouse and ask them their concerns about working to become debt free? Help them get on board. No one likes to sacrifice. I understand I really do. I don’t want to sacrifice either, but I don’t wanna be paying interest for the rest of my life, and this was a step needed to get Chad on board.

We are Headed for Financial Freedom

Once everyone in the family felt that they were not going to go entirely without during the debt-payoff process, we were good to go. It took almost 4 years for Chad and me to get rid of our debts and my parent’s debts which I will share soon.

If you have any questions, please comment below or email me. How did you get your spouse on board? Are you at odds with your spouse to get on board? Let me know what’s going on in your world, and maybe I can help. I know it was tricky for me. May your debt free journey be quick and rewarding!