'Entitled' 23-Year-Old Works At His Dad's Company Making $115,000, But Feels He Could Make More — Dave Ramsey Snaps: 'You Think You're All That'

A 23-year-old named John called into the "EntreLeadership" podcast back in November, hoping for some career guidance. Instead, he got a brutal reality check. The video, titled "Dave Ramsey Calls Out This Entitled 23-Year-Old," captured a conversation where Ramsey didn't hold back, telling John exactly why his situation wasn't as unfair as he thought.

Not a Side Hustle—It's Dad's Business

John had been working at his father's business for a few years, pulling in a salary of $65,000 with annual bonuses that brought his earnings up to around $115,000. Despite that, he felt stuck. He was doing the work of two or three people, had no control over the company's decisions, and was convinced he could make even more if he struck out on his own. On top of that, he and his wife had started a business in the marine industry, bringing in about $40,000 in revenue this year. But there was one glaring issue—he was using his father's CNC machine to do it.

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Ramsey immediately honed in on that. "Wait, wait, wait… I thought you had a side hustle," he said, only to realize the truth. "If your dad owns the equipment, the business, and the revenue, then it's not a side hustle. You expanded his business. This is part of running the business. It has nothing to do with a side hustle."

John admitted the LLC was in his father's name, but he still insisted that he and his wife were running it. Ramsey wasn't buying it. The reality was simple—John didn't own anything. His father had built the foundation, provided the tools, and ultimately controlled the money.

Planning to Compete Against His Own Father

Then came John's main gripe—his regular job. He believed he could make more money if he went independent, even claiming that in one day, he could earn enough to cover his family's monthly expenses. But there was a problem—his plan involved competing directly with his father's business.

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John asked if it would be ethical to start his own company in the same field, and Ramsey didn't hesitate. "No," he shot back. "The reason is, you think you're only being paid for installing. What you're forgetting is, part of what your company's being paid for is your father's name, reputation, and reliability that you had nothing to do with creating."

John tried to argue that two of their biggest clients had come to him first, but Ramsey wasn't having it. "You were running around in short pants while he was doing that," he said bluntly. John might have built relationships, but those clients found the business because of his father's and grandfather's reputation. "You're standing on the shoulders of giants, and you don't know it."

The Reality Check

Then came the biggest gut punch. Ramsey told John exactly what his problem was: "You think you're all that more than you are, and you're an installer right now." The reality was, John wasn't the one who had built the business—he was simply benefiting from generations of hard work. "Give yourself a little time, hun. Stay in the oven and cook up a little more."

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Ramsey didn't tell John to abandon his ambitions, but he made it clear—he wasn't ready to go out on his own yet. Instead of rushing to break away, he should be asking his father to teach him the deeper aspects of running a business: hiring, operations, and long-term strategy.

"I think there's about 30% of this whole thing that you think you're doing, that you're not doing," Ramsey told him.

It wasn't the answer John wanted, but it was the one he needed. Jumping ship too early could be a lot harder than he and his wife imagined.

A Salary Most 23-Year-Olds Would Envy

According to data from DQYDJ, the average annual salary for a 23-year-old in the U.S. is $36,977, while Capital One reports that the median income for those aged 20-24 is $39,104. In comparison, John is making well over $100,000—more than three times the average for his age group.

While John's frustration about wanting to branch out and take control of his career is understandable—especially with an entrepreneurial mindset—it's hard to ignore just how enviable his financial position already is. Ramsey made it clear that John's perspective wasn't just ambitious—it was entitled.

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