Lori Harder speaks about boundaries in friendships: she describes that being able to say no to friends and set clear, loving boundaries results in stronger, long-lasting relationships. She contrasts friends who react negatively to boundaries (and who she excludes) with friends who accept boundaries and are those she expects to remain close into old age.
The people that I know that I can say no to, they're still my friends. The ones who have gotten offended or they're upset. Like, I can't believe you wouldn't say yes to whatever. I'm like, great. I can't have them in my life anyway. I can honestly tell you that I look around at my friendships, and they are the people that I want to be in rocking chairs with when I'm 80. Like, and I also know they're going to be there, like, through all of it. And it came through boundaries, like, setting boundaries and being clear but loving. It's giving us the best relationships of our lives.
