Dave Ramsey Welcomes Jon Acuff to the Team

Hey guys, some cool things are happening around our place, and I want to take a second to tell you about it. I’m excited to announce a new team member that you’re going to be hearing from a lot in the coming months. Popular author, blogger and speaker Jon Acuff is bringing his unique perspective to our team, and I couldn’t be more excited!

Jon started the Stuff Christians Like blog as a hobby back in 2008 and since then has seen more than 1.7 million readers hit the site from 97% of the countries of the world. He just released his first book, Stuff Christians Like, this year and is already working hard on his second. As much as I loved the first book, I’ve taken a peek at the second one, and I can’t wait for it to hit the shelves sometime next year!

He has a powerful message, and he’s one of the best young communicators I’ve ever heard. You’re going to see articles and video blogs pop up on daveramsey.com fairly often, so be on the lookout and join me in welcoming Jon Acuff to our team!

—Dave

7 Ways Working For Dave Ramsey Is Like Willy Wonka’s Chocolate Factory

By Jon Acuff

A month ago, my family and I moved from Atlanta, Georgia, to Nashville, Tennessee, so that I could work for Dave Ramsey. I’ve been a fan for years, but honestly never thought I’d find myself as a member of his team. Now, with a few weeks under my belt, I think I’m ready to confidently say what no one else has yet …

Working for Dave Ramsey is like working at Willy Wonka’s Chocolate Factory.

If you’re not familiar with the film or the book, allow me to say that the Chocolate Factory is as wonderful as you would expect a factory tasked with making chocolate would be. It is a place of merriment and joy. And, it turns out that it is much like having a job at the Dave Ramsey headquarters.

In fact, there are seven ways the two organizations are similar.

1. The halls smell like cookies.
   That is not a metaphor—the halls literally smell like delicious cookies. Why? Because in the lobby, the grandmother you’ve always wanted is baking delicious cookies all day. Her name is Martha, and she is like Paula-Deen-meets-Martha-Stewart-meets-“Whoa, is there a lady baking free cookies in the lobby?” Last week, I went to see Martha and she was hand-dipping strawberries in chocolate, because we had some special guests in town and she wanted their visit to be magical.
   
   
2. You never know who will show up.
   Every Wednesday morning, the whole company shares a devotional presentation. During my first week, I leaned over to my friend and said, “Who is speaking today?” Without missing a beat, he said, “The former lead singer of the band Petra.” Seems about right. You never know who you will see or hear from at Dave Ramsey. Expect celebrities, dignitaries and rock stars to pop up from time to time.
   
   
3. The Christmas party is legendary.
   If you ask an employee about the annual Christmas event, they lower their voice like Haley Joel Osment in “The Sixth Sense” and quietly whisper, “I see parties.” An epic event that culminates an intense year, the Dave Ramsey Christmas party is the stuff of legends. It’s just one more way Dave and his team of leaders celebrate the employees in truly Wonka-sized proportions.
   
   
4. Dave does his radio show in the lobby.
   Every now and then, I’ll walk downstairs and see Dave doing his nationally syndicated radio show from the lobby. Through the glass, you can watch him reach millions of people. It’s like watching Michael Jordan dunking on people in your lobby. He’s at the top of his game, doing what so few people can do, and he’s doing it from the lobby. The whole thing is surreal.
   
   
5. People come from across the country to yell in our building.
   Don’t mind the screaming, that’s just people from around the nation yelling that they’re debt-free. I don’t know about your job, but I’ve never worked somewhere that people make pilgrimages to. I’ve never had a destination job where people come to mail their final credit card payment from the building. I’ve never worked in a building where groups of fans take tours. But people love chocolate factories, and people love Dave Ramsey.
   
   
6. The walls are covered with crazy modern art.
   There is a piece of art hanging in the hall outside my office. It’s a shark with a big gaping mouth. Big deal, right? Sure, it would just be like any other piece of art, if it weren’t made entirely of chopped-up credit cards. Every year, thousands of people mail their destroyed credit cards to us. And sometimes, our fans even create works of art out of their credit cards to celebrate and commemorate their hard work. So expect some abstract, modern finance art around every corner. It only adds to the whimsical feel of the whole building.
   
   
7. The work you do is wild.
   The other day, I got a phone call asking me to attend a quick meeting. I grabbed my 5-star notebook, because all I do is win, and went to the meeting. Turns out they wanted my help coming up with a good title for Dave’s next book. The last book sold millions. It was on the New York Times best-seller list. Therefore, I instantly got a little sweaty. Then Dave showed up and sat right next to me. No pressure. Millions of books on the line. The LeBron James of personal finance sitting next to me. You just need to sum up two decades of business leadership in a three-word book title. Go!

I’d love to tell you more about working with Dave Ramsey, but there’s chocolate to be made. Look for more updates from me in the future. Until then, here’s to hallways that smell like cookies and artwork that’s carved out of credit cards.

Read more from Jon Acuff! Get his book, Stuff Christians Like, today!