Suze Orman

Early life

Orman was born on the North side of Chicago, Illinois in 1951 to Jewish immigrants Ann and Morry Orman. Orman came from a working class background and has said that she did not "grow up with money". She was an undergraduate at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign from which she holds a B.A. in social work. In 1973, she and some friends moved to Berkeley, California, where she became a waitress at the Buttercup Bakery until 1980. From 1980-1983, she was trained by and worked as an Account Executive at Merrill Lynch, and from 1983-87 she was Vice President of Investments for Prudential Bache Securities. In 1987, Orman founded her own business, the Suze Orman Financial Group, which she directed from 1987-1997.

Career

Her books include:

    * The 9 Steps to Financial Freedom (1997)
    * You've Earned It, Don't Lose It: Mistakes You Can't Afford to Make When You Retire (with Linda Mead) (1997)
    * The Courage to Be Rich (1998)
    * The Road to Wealth (2001)
    * The Laws of money, the Lessons of Life... (2003)
    * The money Book for the Young Fabulous and Broke (2005)
    * Women and money: Owning the Power to Control Your Destiny (2007)

Other publications: Orman also has a Q&A advice section in Oprah Winfrey's popular monthly magazine O, alongside Dr. Phil's advice section. she also writes a biweekly column (as of Jan 2007) on Yahoo!'s Finance page.

Telecasts: she also hosts a weekend financial planning show for the CNBC cable television network called The Suze Orman Show.[6] Orman hosts another TV program on QVC called Suze Orman's Financial Freedom. Orman had recently celebrated her fifth year on The Suze Orman Show on CNBC. And also celebrated her tenth anniversary on QVC with Suze Orman's Financial Freedom.

she has won two Daytime Emmy Awards in 2004 and 2006 for her PBS pledge drive specials, The Laws of money, The Lessons of Life and The Money show for the Young, Fabulous, & Broke. Her catch phrases are "Self-worth equals net worth," "People First, Then Money, Then Things," and "Truth creates money. Lies destroy it." "People First, Then Money, Then Things" is the catch phrase Orman ends "The Suze Orman Show" with every week.

In Early 2007, Orman launched a segment on The Suze Orman show called "Can I Afford It?" During the segment viewers call in to the show and tell Orman what they want to buy — e.g. engagement ring, car, HDTV, etc. — then tell her the amount of savings they have — retirement savings, credit card savings, home loans, etc. Then Orman decides if the caller is approved and can afford the item, or if they are denied and can't afford it. The segment airs every week and has grown to be the most popular segment on the show.

Criticism

It was reported in a 1998 Forbes magazine article that she has misrepresented her credentials and background. For example, at the time of writing of the article, She claimed a current Commodity Trading Advisor license which had lapsed, and some of her materials claimed eighteen years' experience working with Wall Street institutions when she in reality had seven.

The San Francisco Chronicle also ran a follow-up to the Forbes piece in which Orman and her publicist dodged critical questions about inaccuracies about Orman's background as reported in Forbes.

Forbes was also critical of the quality of advice given. "buy her book for $23...and you get such tips as: 'Use self-service gas pumps rather than full-serve.' Or, 'Use coins, not your calling card, in pay phones.' On a recent Oprah, Orman advised viewers to search through their closets for misplaced money."

Orman is also criticized for not investing in the stock market (she apparently only buys Treasury bills) despite giving advice for younger investors to do so. Though to be fair, this is the advice usually given to those nearing retirement age.

Personal life

Orman told The New York Times magazine in February 2007 that she is a lesbian. Her partner of seven years is Kathy Travis, a coproducer on The Suze Orman show.[9] In the interview, Orman said that She regrets that she cannot marry her partner and gain the corresponding tax advantages.

Suze Orman is a staunch Democrat and has donated thousands of dollars to Democratic causes this decade, according the website Opensecrets.org. she has donated money to the Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee, and to the campaign of Senator Hillary Clinton (D-NY)