Keep Working?
by Dave Ramsey

My wife has been working at the same company for the last 20 years. She makes $40,000 a year, and she can retire in nine years with full benefits. This may sound crazy, but we’re wondering if it would be a good idea for her to quit now and stay at home with our two toddlers. We’re debt-free, and we could save some money and pay the bills on my income. Is this a bad idea?

Dear Dave,

My wife has been working at the same company for the last 20 years. She makes $40,000 a year, and she can retire in nine years with full benefits. This may sound crazy, but we’re wondering if it would be a good idea for her to quit now and stay at home with our two toddlers. We’re debt-free, and we could save some money and pay the bills on my income. Is this a bad idea?

Sam

Dear Sam,

Is mom staying home with the kids a bad idea? I don’t think so! Go ask those kids which they’d like best – benefits or having mommy around a lot more – and see what they have to say. You already know the answer to that one, don’t you?

We don’t work for retirement and benefits. We work for what benefits and retirement DO for us. Benefits can help us take care of our families, and one of those benefits is money that we can make and save money. Even if she quits, you guys can still do that.

There are all kinds of great work benefits out there, Sam. But if you really want to see some benefits, pour as much time as you can into your kids!

Dave