Financial personality Anthony O’Neal is challenging mentor Dave Ramsey‘s famous “zero credit” rule.
After a decade of preaching it, O’Neal now believes that having no credit history is too great a liability in 2025. His evolved philosophy states that a carefully managed, high credit score — achieved without consumer debt — is a critical tool for unlocking financial opportunities and building wealth.
“My mind has shifted. My mind has evolved,” O’Neal said on his Youtube show, “The Table With AO,” in August. “Operating with no credit history at all can be just as limiting. Because no history still comes at a cost.” That cost includes higher rates for housing, insurance, and even lost job opportunities, O’Neal said.
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A New Path: Strategy Over Doctrine
O’Neal stressed that building a score doesn’t give you permission to rake up consumer debt, but rather should be a calculated move to “unlock better opportunities while staying debt-free and disciplined.” Then, you can use that higher score to build wealth and other investment opportunities.
He recommended using fintech tools — including a specific endorsement of the AI-powered platform Dovly — to safely navigate the credit-building journey. “I want to look at the credit score like an actual car. If you don’t know how to drive it, you’ll wreck your life. But if you learn the rules, stay focused and drive with purpose, you can go places,” he said.
Honoring His Mentor While Forging His Own Path
O’Neal was careful to frame his new stance not as an attack on Ramsey but as an evolution built upon a solid foundation. “What Dave and his amazing personalities and that amazing company over there is doing is phenomenal… It is because of his teachings that I can stand today and be consumer debt-free,” he said.
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To explain his philosophical shift he used the metaphor of a navigation system, describing a time he ignored his GPS because he was dogmatic about his usual route — only to be stuck in traffic for 90 minutes. “What he’s [Ramsey] teaching works,” he said. “But sometimes we can be so dogmatic that we think this is the only way to financial freedom.”
O’Neal said that the new path he’s preaching is especially crucial for the Black community, citing a dire forecast of zero to negative net worth by 2054. He believes that strategic home ownership — often requiring leveraged credit — and financial education are keys to reversing this trend.
“Ownership within the Black community equals freedom and it produces freedom,” he said. “I’m not just talking about home ownership. I’m talking about ownership. Period. Money is a tool. I’m using that tool to own. Once I own something, it brings freedom.”
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The Bottom Line for 2025
O’Neal’s paradigm shift acknowledges the reality of a financial system that relies on credit history, while still upholding his core value of living free of consumer debt. And in sum, his new doctrine boils down to a core concept: stewardship.
“I am not saying go get into consumer debt. Hell no,” O’Neal said. “What I’m saying is be wise, be intentional and be a good steward. Your credit score can be a tool, not a trap… You can walk into financial freedom with strategy and 100% no stress.”
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