Why Gen Z is getting better at saying “I can’t afford it”  + MORE Aug 14th

There was a time when telling your friends, “Sorry, I can’t afford it,” felt more uncomfortable than quietly putting a night out on your credit card.

A pricey birthday dinner? You went. A destination wedding that required a flight, hotel, and three new outfits? You just figured it out. A group trip you hadn’t budgeted for? Saying no meant admitting that money was the reason, and for many people, that’s enough to make them say yes anyway. 

Gen Z is starting to change that. From talking openly about the cost of experiences to opting out when something isn’t in the budget, younger Canadians seem to be more and more willing to set financial boundaries—and even saying them out loud.

“I’d say in general, Gen Z is more vocal about boundaries, whether it’s their finances or in their career or their personal life, than probably any other generation,” says Jessica Moorhouse, an accredited financial counsellor and author of Everything but Money.

Why is Gen Z more comfortable saying no?

Part of the shift may simply be that this generation came of age with a louder voice…

Paying down debt is often presented as a simple equation: spend less, earn more, and put the difference toward what you owe. But knowing what to do is only part of the challenge. The harder part is consistently making financial decisions that support your goals, especially when rising costs, unexpected expenses, or everyday temptations get in the way.

That’s where habits come in. Habits are the automatic behaviours that shape how we spend, save, borrow, and manage money over time. A single budgeting session or extra debt payment can help, but it’s the small actions we repeat consistently that create lasting financial change.

At Credit Canada, we often talk about the formula of a habit. Every habit is made up of three parts:

Motivation: This is your “why”—your reason for wanting to change.

Ability: This is the “how”—what you have access to in order to make the behaviour simple and realistic enough to repeat.

Prompt: This is the “when”—the reminder that encourages you to take action…