If your mortgage rate is higher than your credit card rate, student loan, auto loan, or what-have-you, you should absolutely pay it off first. Every month, pay your required minimum to all your debts, then all the money you have left over to throw at debts should go to your highest interest rate, regardless of whether that's your mortgage or otherwise.

You'll save the most money this way. Sure, you won't get your credit card paid off early, only at the time already designated by the minimum payments, but you saved more money paying off your mortgage early than your credit card early. In this hypothetical situation in which your credit card has lower interest than your mortgage.

Psychology? Your emotions and irrational behavior is what got you into this mess. Logic an numbers will get you out. Quit letting your heart rule your head, like a child. Again, that's why Dave Ramsey talks to people with the maturity of children.

You want to work with finances? Work with finances. You want to play psychological games about your feelings, go sit in a circle and hold hands. This is serious business, not "I feel sad about how many debts I have." Quit piddling around and pay them off.

Of course your income is a more powerful tool when not saddled with debt. That's so stupidly obvious. That's why I listed it among the things Dave Ramsey says.

Why are so many people living paycheck-to-paycheck and/or have massive credit card debt? Because they're childlike people with no maturity or thought of the future. They let their "psychology" rule their actions. They fall prey to emotions and ignore cold, hard facts.

I didn't say it was common sense. If anything, it's more common to be one of those morons than it is to keep your life straight.

And Dave Ramsey focuses on helping the majority - those who haven't been able to take the five whole minutes it takes to learn what he's saying. Seriously, a five-year-old should have a mastery of what Dave Ramsey says. Why don't more adults? I have no idea.