Jada Pinkett Smith Says She Doesn’t Loan Money To Friends & Family: I Only Give Money That I’m Willing To Give Away

Jada Pinkett Smith Says She Doesn’t Loan Money To Friends & Family: I Only Give Money That I’m Willing To Give Away

Jada Pinkett Smith says that she does no loan people money.

During a recent episode of  Red Table Talk, the hosts answered a question from the audience about saying “no” to loved ones who ask for money. Jada Pinkett Smith says that she does not loan out money, she only gives money away as a gift, that she is not expecting back.

“I’ve spent so many years feeling guilty, and my guilt made me feel like I owed everybody and I wasn’t allowed to say ‘no.’ And that’s just not true, right? So I came up with a couple of rules for myself. First of all, I don’t lend money. I only give money that I’m willing to give away — like, this is a gift.” 

She adds that when a person needs money she takes time to determine if the person is ready for the help.

“When somebody really needs help, I really evaluate it to see if the person is ready for that help. You feel me?”

She added that she fully assesses the person’s situation before giving them money, and she only gives to people with resources and education.

“So it’s like…‘I want a new house,’ but they don’t have a job to support the house they’re trying to buy…It’s like, well, you’re not ready for that. So I’m not about to help you get into something that ultimately is going to make more difficulty for you, right? And so, I really had to look at that. So I’ve also learned to help people with resources, with education.”

She ended her statement with:

“People will make you feel like, ‘You owe me. I was standing next to you. I grew up in the house with you. I did this and that with you I knew you when.’ At the end of the day, you don’t owe nobody nothing.”

Jada Pinkett-Smith

In a recent episode of Red Table Talk Jada Pinkett-Smith, 49, talked about dealing with how the public perceives you.

“I never worry about being liked because it’s a trick bag.”

She adds:

“That is the space of manipulation. If you need somebody to like you it’ll be too difficult for someone to act from an authentic place.”