How Do I Start Investing? - Ramsey Everyday Millionaires

Summary3 min read

Podcast Summary: “How Do I Start Investing?”

Ramsey Everyday Millionaires
Date: February 23, 2026
Hosts: Dave Ramsey, Ken Coleman
Featured Caller: Andrew from Chicago

Overview

This episode centers on actionable first steps for beginning investors, focusing on strategic goal setting and practical advice to maximize retirement savings. Hosts Dave Ramsey and Ken Coleman take a call from Andrew, a listener who's completed the early Ramsey Baby Steps and wants guidance on hitting the recommended 15% investing benchmark to build long-term wealth.

Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. Where to Start After Baby Step 3

Andrew and his wife have completed Baby Step 3 (fully funded emergency fund) and are investing in their workplace 401(k)s.
Their question: How do they reach the 15% investment goal Ramsey recommends?

2. Clarifying Match vs. Max [00:41–01:06]

Dave Ramsey: Clarifies the difference between getting the full employer match (“match”) and contributing the maximum allowed to a 401(k) (“max”).
Advises to always capitalize on the employer match first.
Both Andrew and his wife receive a 3% employer match.

3. Calculating the 15% Target [01:19–01:44]

Dave helps Andrew break down the math:
- With a $90,000 household income, 15% is roughly $14,000/year.
- Subtracting their 6% (about $3,000 via matches), they need to save an additional $10,000–11,000/year.

4. Next Investment Steps: Roth IRAs [01:46–02:15]

Recommendation: Open Roth IRAs for both spouses.
Use SmartVestor Pros at RamseySolutions.com for guidance.
Allocate $5,000–6,000 per person to Roth IRAs invested in growth stock mutual funds.

5. Selecting Funds & Mutual Fund Advice [02:16–02:44]

Use SmartVestor Pros to understand choices within 401(k) and IRAs.
Choose growth stock mutual funds both for 401(k) contributions and new Roth IRA accounts.
Bring 401(k) options to the SmartVestor meeting for personalized advice.

6. College Savings: 529

Brief mention of starting a 529 plan for a child’s future college expenses.

7. Overcoming Investment Intimidation [02:44–End]

Dave reassures Andrew (and listeners) that investing can seem intimidating at first, but is straightforward once you start.
Encourages taking the first step: “The very first time you do it, there’s a little bit of intimidation. But investing is really not that intellectually challenging. There’s not that much to it.” [03:00]

Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

Dave Ramsey [01:55]:
"If you take your options that you’re allowed to invest in down to the SmartVestor Pro, when you sit down with them, they’ll help you pick out your 401(k) options while they’re getting your IRA signed up."
Dave Ramsey [02:45]:
"But investing is really not that intellectually challenging. There’s not that much to it. And, but once you get started on it and you start understanding it, you’re gonna go, ‘Oh, that’s all there is to it. Oh, that’s it. No big deal.’"
Dave Ramsey [03:12]:
"You’re gonna be very wealthy. That’s cool. You’re getting started early. I love it, I love it, I love it. Very good."

Timestamps for Key Segments

[00:20] — Andrew describes his financial progress and asks about next investment steps.
[00:41] — Dave Ramsey explains match vs. max and confirms employer matches.
[01:19] — Discussion of household income and calculating target investment amounts.
[01:55] — Advice to use SmartVestor Pros and start Roth IRAs.
[02:16] — Guidance on mutual fund selections and 401(k) options.
[02:44] — Encouragement about overcoming investing intimidation.

Tone & Takeaways

The conversation is encouraging, straightforward, and focused on empowering listeners to take control of their financial futures. Dave Ramsey’s trademark “heart of a teacher” approach comes through as he breaks down intimidating financial topics into manageable steps and reassures listeners that—even if it feels overwhelming at first—investing is accessible to everyone.

Key Takeaway: Start by getting your employer’s full 401(k) match, use Roth IRAs to reach the 15% saving goal (investing in growth stock mutual funds), and don’t let starting intimidate you—“There’s not that much to it!”

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Transcript15 lines

[00:00]
A
Foreign. This episode is brought to you by SmartVestor. Connect with an investing pro near you at RamseySolutions.com SmartVestor Andrew's with us in Chicago. Hi Andrew, how are you? Good, how are you? Dave and Ken, better than we deserve. What's up?
[00:20]
B
So I just got a quick question basically regarding investments. So my wife and I, we've been married for going on three years now. We've got a five month old daughter. We've worked through the first three baby steps, paid off everything except for the house, got our three to six months saved. And we both invest into our 401k through like our workplaces and we're just looking like where do we go next to get to that like 15% that you guys recommend?
[00:42]
A
Okay, so you maxed your 401ks?
[00:44]
B
Yes sir, I am. I match at 3% at my work and my wife is same with her employer through her school.
[00:51]
A
Now Max means you put all you can put in, not up to 3%.
[00:55]
B
Sorry, I said match my.
[00:57]
A
No, no, I'm sorry, Max. So have you got a 401k that has a Roth option?
[01:03]
B
It does not. No, that's what I was going to ask about.
[01:06]
A
Okay, so here's the thing we found out match is best. So get all the match you can. You've done that with your 3%. Does your wife have a match?
[01:16]
B
I am 90% sure. It's the same at match at 3%.
[01:19]
A
Okay, perfect. That's easy. That means we still need to put 12% of our household income away somewhere. What is your household income roughly?
[01:30]
B
Probably right around that 90,000 a year, roughly.
[01:33]
A
Okay, all right, cool. So 15% is, you know, 14,000 and some change. Right. And so, and we're already putting 3% away, so let's call that 3,000. So let's just say we need to put another 10 or 11,000 away. You both can do a Roth IRA and just go to ramseysolutions.com and click on SmartVestor Pro.
[01:56]
B
Okay.
[01:56]
A
And click on SmartVestor, you'll be introduced to one of our SmartVestor Pros or two or three of them and you can choose which one you want to work with. They've got the heart of a teacher. They'll sit down, teach you about this and then show you how to do it and help you actually create the Roth IRA in some good growth stock mutual funds. And it sounds like you guys need to be putting away somewhere around 10,000. So you could put, you know, 5 or 6,000 each and every into a Roth IRA and have a really good plan going with the 3% over at work. And the 3% over at work also needs to be in good growth stock mutual funds. If you take your options that you're allowed to invest in down to the Smartvestor Pro, when you sit down with them, they'll help you pick out your 401k options while they're getting your IRA signed up. And then if you wanna open a 529 for your kid's college, you can do that there too. Very easy to do. And, but it's, you know, it's like anything. The very first time you do it, there's a little bit of intimidating, intimidation. But investing is really not that intellectually challenging. There's not that much to it. And, but, and so once you get started on it and you start understanding it, you're gonna go, oh, that's all there is to it. Oh, that's it. No big deal. And you'll be just fine. So that's really good question, sir. Very well done. You're gonna be very wealthy. That's cool. You're getting started early. I love it. I love it, I love it. Very good.