I respect Ramit as an entrepreneur, but mocking frugality as if it's a waste is wrong.
So big ol' thumbs down and facepunch for this one. Ramit just doesn't get why people pursue frugality.
Ramit understands frugality just fine. His point is that investing in yourself and boosting your income almost always has a higher ROI than cutting your expenses, assuming that such a financial feat is achievable for most people. He gives people the self-confidence to take the risk.
Look at Jeff Yeager, the Ultimate Cheapskate. He also says it's about the big decisions: the home purchase, the car purchase, the college degree. The daily latte factor is insignificant next to a monster McMansion or an SUV.
Ramit has staked out a great Internet franchise with lots of dedicated followers who would rather pursue his methods than deal with frugality. He makes his point with mocking humor, hyperbole, and sarcasm. I enjoy watching him at FinCon, but I'm not sure where he stands on "living green" and reducing our global resource consumption. He probably thinks it's a highly profitable business model, and he'd be right.
In the meantime, there's nothing wrong with accelerating our own FI by using both frugality
and boosting our income.
