Episode Summary: "Should I Fire My Financial Advisor?"

Podcast: Ramsey Everyday Millionaires
Date: December 29, 2025
Hosts: Dave Ramsey, others from Ramsey Network
Theme: Evaluating financial advisors, responsibility in investing, passive vs. active investment strategies

Overview

This episode centers on a listener’s concerns about his financial advisor's performance—specifically underperforming investments and a lack of proactive service. The discussion unpacks the real purpose of a financial advisor, the investor’s own responsibilities, and strategies for managing investments both independently and with professional help. The show delivers practical advice on what to expect from an advisor, how to stay informed, and when it might be time to move on.

Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. Listener Concern: Underperformance and Inattention

• Caller David from Indianapolis shares disappointment: his portfolio only grew 7% compared to the S&P 500’s 17%, and his advisor let cash sit unused in a money market account ([00:20]-[01:15]).
• David isn’t fully sure what funds he’s invested in or why they underperformed.

2. Responsibility in the Advisor-Investor Relationship

• Dave Ramsey emphasizes that investors must stay informed and make active choices; your advisor isn’t a babysitter ([01:15]-[01:54]):
  • “Your financial advisor’s job is not to babysit you. Their job is to teach you and you make your decisions.”
• Delegating everything without oversight can lead to poor outcomes or even potential fraud:
  • “You just tossed the money over the fence and hoped he handled it well. And that's a good way to lose everything.” ([01:38]-[01:54])

3. How to Work With an Advisor

• Ramsey describes the ideal advisor as a teacher, not just a fund picker ([02:13]-[03:53]):
  • “Your financial advisor's job is to be a teacher … and you go, ‘Yeah, I like that. I'm going to make the choice.’”
• The investor must be a student, taking responsibility for choices and understanding what’s happening in the portfolio.

4. Passive vs. Active Investing

• The hosts discuss simply investing in an S&P 500 index fund (passive) versus using an advisor to identify funds that outperform the S&P (active) ([04:08]-[05:41]).
• Dave Ramsey:
  • “What you’re paying him to do is ... show you mutual funds that are outperforming the S&P, and then you decide if you think they're going to continue to do that.”

5. Value Beyond Returns

• Good advisors look at your entire financial picture: investments, real estate, taxes, charitable giving ([05:45]-[06:25]).
• An advisor’s job is not to make decisions for you, but to inform you and help implement your choices with discipline.

6. The Rise of DIY Investing

• Listeners note an increasing trend toward independent investing using low-fee platforms like Vanguard ([06:48]-[07:13]).
• Dave acknowledges the longstanding appeal of “Boglehead” investing—putting everything in a low-cost S&P 500 index ([07:17]-[08:48]):
  • “The S&P 500 outperforms more than half of the mutual funds. So if you just blindly go pick a mutual fund, you'd have been better off to pick the S&P 500 index …” ([07:21]-[08:24])

7. Choosing (and Keeping) a Financial Advisor

• Only keep an advisor if they act with the "heart of a teacher."
• Advisors typically charge around 1% of assets; they must consistently outperform the market to justify their fee ([08:24]-[09:03]).
• Teachers (Ramsey-endorsed advisors) are preferred; their role is to educate and partner, not just transact.

Notable Quotes & Moments

• Dave Ramsey ([01:15]):
  “Your financial advisor’s job is not to babysit you. Their job is to teach you … and then if you don’t like the returns, it’s due to your choices. But you don’t even know what’s going on.”

• Dave Ramsey ([02:13]):
  "I do not have any mutual funds with my financial advisor that I didn’t choose—not because I’m Dave Ramsey, but because that’s what we teach people to do."

• Dave Ramsey ([04:08]):
  "Now you can go buy a Vanguard S&P and throw it all in there. … That’s called passive investing."

• Co-Host ([05:45]):
  "A great financial advisor is looking at more than just your 401k … they’re looking over your entire financial portfolio."

• Dave Ramsey ([07:21]):
  "You don’t need [an advisor] to get you in the space. You need one to maximize the space."

• Dave Ramsey ([08:24]):
  "Bogle started Vanguard … The S&P 500 outperforms more than half of the mutual funds. … Those are called Bogleheads, okay? And they’re not new just because TikTok came along."

• Dave Ramsey ([09:10]):
  "I’ve heard Dave Ramsey’s a crook for 35 years because I told people not to do that and go pay a commission to outperform Bogleheads. And Dave Ramsey is not a crook. I’m a genius."

Timestamps for Key Segments

• Listener's Question and Concerns: [00:20]-[01:15]
• Advisor’s Role vs. Investor Responsibility: [01:15]-[03:53]
• Mutual Fund Selection & Passive Investing: [04:08]-[05:41]
• Benefits of a Good Advisor: [05:41]-[06:25]
• Trends in DIY Investing: [06:48]-[08:24]
• Advisor Fees & Outcomes: [08:24]-[09:03]

Takeaways for Listeners

• Know what you own and why. Investors must take charge of their portfolio decisions, even when working with an advisor.
• An advisor’s role should be educational, not custodial. Fire advisors who don’t teach or communicate.
• Passive investing with index funds is a solid, long-term strategy if you don’t want to actively manage or research funds yourself.
• If you pay for advice, make sure it provides value—ideally, greater returns or a better holistic plan, not just simple allocation.
• Stay involved—people who understand their portfolios ride out market volatility and make wiser decisions.

This episode offers timeless, practical investment wisdom with the candid banter and no-nonsense advice the Ramsey brand is known for.