How to Money · Wednesday, July 22, 2026
Aja Evans emphasizes the importance of setting boundaries in financial relationships, starting with identifying personal discomfort levels. She advises open communication using 'I' statements to express needs and limits, acknowledging that cultural backgrounds can influence financial expectations and interactions within families.
“So I would say the first step is deciding where they need to be. I think a lot of times people want to set boundaries, but they don't know where they should be, Like when is it okay?”
“The first step is really deciding where do you start to get uncomfortable. Where do you start to feel like, oh gosh, I don't want to have this conversation, or oh gosh, they might ask me for money, or I want to give them money, but they're really uncomfortable about it. That is a signifier to tell you, like, hey, something's going on with your boundaries, Like when you start getting uncomfortable or feeling uneasy after that, thinking about like, Okay, how can I have this conversation to set the boundary in a way that I feel comfortable and I feel safe, and I am also not trying to hurt their feelings.”
“And I think that's where we all get, you know, a little caught up because we don't want to hurt the other person's feelings, but we are hurting ourselves and not protecting our own boundaries. So we have to be brave and be kind to ourselves and try as hard as possible to just like let them know what is comfortable for you and what isn't, what you're willing to do and what you aren't willing to do.”