--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: the past will influence your future, but…" description: "\"“the past will influence your future, but it doesn't have to destroy it.”\" — Ellen Hopkins" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/069/ellen-hopkins-475_future_the-past-will-influence-your-future-but_536244.png" --- # the past will influence your future, but it doesn't have… ![“the past will influence your future, but it doesn't have to destroy it.” quote by Ellen Hopkins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/069/ellen-hopkins-475_future_the-past-will-influence-your-future-but_536244.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/069/ellen-hopkins-475_future_the-past-will-influence-your-future-but_536244.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/069/ellen-hopkins-475_future_the-past-will-influence-your-future-but_536244.png) > ““the past will influence your future, but it doesn't have to destroy it.”” [Ellen Hopkins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ellen-hopkins/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Past experiences shape us, but we can choose not to be defined or them. **In simple terms:** Past influences, doesn’t control you. Key Takeaway Rewrite your narrative despite history. Themes growth resilience self‑determination Mood hopeful determined Type motivational philosophical When to use this quote - therapy - career planning - relationship building - creative projects Key Concepts psychology personal agency Questions to Reflect On - What past event still affects you? - How can you transform that influence? A Different Perspective Healing takes effort; past can linger. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Future](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/future/) [Influence](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/influence/) [Past](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/past/) [Time](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/time/) ## Related quotes > [The past can influence the future. When you finish one chapter, you open another, which will be influenced by what you've just lived through.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edgar-davids/the-past-can-influence-the-future-when-you-finish-one-chapter-you/) [Edgar Davids](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edgar-davids/) > [“Custom, then, is the great guide of human life. It is that principle alone which renders our experience useful to us, and makes us…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-hume/custom-then-is-the-great-guide-of-human-life-it-is-that-principle-2/) [David Hume](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-hume/) > [ Through it \[literature\] we know the past, govern the present, and influence the future. ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charlotte-perkins-gilman/through-it-literature-we-know-the-past-govern-the-present-and/) [Charlotte Perkins Gilman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charlotte-perkins-gilman/) > [We can influence the future but not see it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stewart-brand/we-can-influence-the-future-but-not-see-it/) [Stewart Brand](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stewart-brand/) > [We never know which lives we influence, or when, or why. Not until the future eats the present, anyway. We know when it's too…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-king/we-never-know-which-lives-we-influence-or-when-or-why-not-until-the/) [Stephen King](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-king/) > [Live in the present, not the future, and certainly not the past. Never spend all the time regretting events that have already passed or…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dr-anil-kr-sinha/live-in-the-present-not-the-future-and-certainly-not-the-past-never/) [Dr Anil Kr Sinha](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dr-anil-kr-sinha/) > [We are connected with our own age if we recognize ourselves in relation to outside events; and we have grasped its spirit when we…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hans-hofmann/we-are-connected-with-our-own-age-if-we-recognize-ourselves-in/) [Hans Hofmann](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hans-hofmann/) > [Labour once spent has no influence on the future value of any article; it isgone and lost for ever. In commerce bygones are forever…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-stanley-jevons/labour-once-spent-has-no-influence-on-the-future-value-of-any-article/) [William Stanley Jevons](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-stanley-jevons/) > [“the future doesn't care what you wish.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dirk-wittenborn/the-future-doesn-t-care-what-you-wish/) [Dirk Wittenborn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dirk-wittenborn/) > [“In the expectation of wonderful things to happen in the future, one doesn’t hear the sound of the wind and rain, the breath and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/toni-packer/in-the-expectation-of-wonderful-things-to-happen-in-the-future-one/) [Toni Packer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/toni-packer/) > [You can never plan a future with someone who doesn't have a future planned out for themselves.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rashida-rowe/you-can-never-plan-a-future-with-someone-who-doesn-t-have-a-future/) [Rashida Rowe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rashida-rowe/) > [The future doesn't belong to the fainthearted; it belongs to the brave.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ronald-reagan/the-future-doesn-t-belong-to-the-fainthearted-it-belongs-to-the-brave/) [Ronald Reagan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ronald-reagan/) > [The future doesn't have to mimic the worst parts of the present. There are new ways of sharing information, and as long as they…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-giroux/the-future-doesn-t-have-to-mimic-the-worst-parts-of-the-present-there/) [Henry Giroux](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-giroux/) > [The future doesn't belong to the light-hearted. It belongs to the brave.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/the-future-doesn-t-belong-to-the-light-hearted-it-belongs-to-the-brave/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [The future is not so interesting for me because the future doesn't exist. I am really focused on the contemporary.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alessandro-michele/the-future-is-not-so-interesting-for-me-because-the-future-doesn-t/) [Alessandro Michele](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alessandro-michele/) ## More by Ellen Hopkins > [“I've been alone since my mom met Scott. He sucked the nectar from her heart like a famished butterfly. No nurture, no nourishment left…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ellen-hopkins/i-ve-been-alone-since-my-mom-met-scott-he-sucked-the-nectar-from-her/) [Ellen Hopkins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ellen-hopkins/) > [I wonder how long it would take him to realize I'm right as sin - it's the rest of the world that's wrong. I'm…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ellen-hopkins/i-wonder-how-long-it-would-take-him-to-realize-i-m-right-as-sin-it-s/) [Ellen Hopkins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ellen-hopkins/) > [Do you know how beautiful you are?' I shook my head 'I'm not. But you make me fell like I am.' I wanted to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ellen-hopkins/do-you-know-how-beautiful-you-are-i-shook-my-head-i-m-not-but-you/) [Ellen Hopkins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ellen-hopkins/) > [That's what I'll be. A silhouette, rarely seen, and yet believed in.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ellen-hopkins/that-s-what-i-ll-be-a-silhouette-rarely-seen-and-yet-believed-in/) [Ellen Hopkins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ellen-hopkins/) > [One foot in front of the other, counting tiles on the floor so I don't have to focus the blur of painted smiles, fake…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ellen-hopkins/one-foot-in-front-of-the-other-counting-tiles-on-the-floor-so-i-don-t/) [Ellen Hopkins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ellen-hopkins/) > [...life is all about chances. You might be safer not taking any. But playing it totally safe means you're only existing. Not living. I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ellen-hopkins/life-is-all-about-chances-you-might-be-safer-not-taking-any-but/) [Ellen Hopkins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ellen-hopkins/) > [The truth is, I don't have a real clue what love is - how to find it, how to give it. Once upon a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ellen-hopkins/the-truth-is-i-don-t-have-a-real-clue-what-love-is-how-to-find-it-how/) [Ellen Hopkins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ellen-hopkins/) > [But death doesn't scare me. To know exactly when I might expect it, up close and in my face, would actually be a comfort.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ellen-hopkins/but-death-doesn-t-scare-me-to-know-exactly-when-i-might-expect-it-up/) [Ellen Hopkins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ellen-hopkins/) > [So You Want to Know All about her. Who she really is. (Was?) Why she swerved off the high road. Hard left to nowhere,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ellen-hopkins/so-you-want-to-know-all-about-her-who-she-really-is-was-why-she/) [Ellen Hopkins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ellen-hopkins/) > [“I don’t belong here. I know that. But I don’t belong anywhere else, either. And that is at the heart of the black depression…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ellen-hopkins/i-don-t-belong-here-i-know-that-but-i-don-t-belong-anywhere-else/) [Ellen Hopkins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ellen-hopkins/) > [Six months since we met up again we are inseparable, an intricate weave. No longer do I believe this is a temporary fling. More…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ellen-hopkins/six-months-since-we-met-up-again-we-are-inseparable-an-intricate/) [Ellen Hopkins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ellen-hopkins/) > [“But who ever said the easiest path is the one you should choose?”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ellen-hopkins/but-who-ever-said-the-easiest-path-is-the-one-you-should-choose/) [Ellen Hopkins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ellen-hopkins/) > [Afraid to Die Loveless Because I think if you die without knowing love in this life, that's how you'll spend eternity. Alone. Frozen.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ellen-hopkins/afraid-to-die-loveless-because-i-think-if-you-die-without-knowing/) [Ellen Hopkins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ellen-hopkins/) > [Every high has an equal, measurable low.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ellen-hopkins/every-high-has-an-equal-measurable-low/) [Ellen Hopkins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ellen-hopkins/) > [Don't Stop ...down, ...Down there ...down where ...monsters, ...Run!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ellen-hopkins/don-t-stop-down-down-there-down-where-monsters-run/) [Ellen Hopkins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ellen-hopkins/) [Explore all 534 Ellen Hopkins quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ellen-hopkins/) ## More Future quotes > [“The future is only an indifferent void no one cares about, but the past is filled with life, and its countenance is irritating, repellent,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/milan-kundera/the-future-is-only-an-indifferent-void-no-one-cares-about-but-the/) [Milan Kundera](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/milan-kundera/) > [Getting on the cover of TIME guarantees the existence of opposition in the future.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-kenneth-galbraith/getting-on-the-cover-of-time-guarantees-the-existence-of-opposition/) [John Kenneth Galbraith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-kenneth-galbraith/) > [In the future, I would like to do more films with contemporary themes. Perhaps comedy, which is something I have done in theater but…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/luke-evans/in-the-future-i-would-like-to-do-more-films-with-contemporary-themes/) [Luke Evans](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/luke-evans/) > [You practice mindfulness, on the one hand, to be calm and peaceful. On the other hand, as you practice mindfulness and live a life…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/you-practice-mindfulness-on-the-one-hand-to-be-calm-and-peaceful-on/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [If you can connect people, you can create the future.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/scott-heiferman/if-you-can-connect-people-you-can-create-the-future/) [Scott Heiferman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/scott-heiferman/) > [A strong, durable Puerto Rican economy will leave the island better prepared to handle future natural disasters.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rachel-campos-duffy/a-strong-durable-puerto-rican-economy-will-leave-the-island-better/) [Rachel Campos-Duffy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rachel-campos-duffy/) > [“We have no idea, now, of who or what the inhabitants of our future might be. In that sense, we have no future. Not…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-gibson/we-have-no-idea-now-of-who-or-what-the-inhabitants-of-our-future/) [William Gibson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-gibson/) > [“You are destiny for greatness. Your future is in the hands of the Lord.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lailah-gifty-akita/you-are-destiny-for-greatness-your-future-is-in-the-hands-of-the-lord/) [Lailah Gifty Akita](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lailah-gifty-akita/) > [I'm just always looking forwards. I spend very little time, looking backwards.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gary-vaynerchuk/i-m-just-always-looking-forwards-i-spend-very-little-time-looking/) [Gary Vaynerchuk](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gary-vaynerchuk/) > [Football is my passion, and who knows where I will play in the future - you cannot foresee that.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edinson-cavani/football-is-my-passion-and-who-knows-where-i-will-play-in-the-future/) [Edinson Cavani](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edinson-cavani/) > [When I was 17, I broke up with my future wife.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kris-allen/when-i-was-17-i-broke-up-with-my-future-wife/) [Kris Allen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kris-allen/) > [I think everybody in the future has stopped talking to each other and we all just use emojis.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/scarlett-moffatt/i-think-everybody-in-the-future-has-stopped-talking-to-each-other-and/) [Scarlett Moffatt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/scarlett-moffatt/) > [When you continue to dwell on the past, there's no chance for a future. History repeats itself, thus, it's ok to LOOK back at…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/when-you-continue-to-dwell-on-the-past-there-s-no-chance-for-a-future/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [I am no different from a lot of people. I am concerned for the future of my children and concerned for the future of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-barnes/i-am-no-different-from-a-lot-of-people-i-am-concerned-for-the-future/) [John Barnes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-barnes/) > [Starting a new job can be nerve-racking , but it's also exciting. You're embarking on a new future, positioning yourself to write a fresh…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/adena-friedman/starting-a-new-job-can-be-nerve-racking-but-it-s-also-exciting-you-re/) [Adena Friedman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/adena-friedman/) [Browse all 12,349 Future quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/future/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "“the past will influence your future, but it doesn't have to destroy it.”", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Ellen Hopkins" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ellen-hopkins/the-past-will-influence-your-future-but-it-doesn-t-have-to-destroy-it/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Future" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ellen-hopkins/the-past-will-influence-your-future-but-it-doesn-t-have-to-destroy-it/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/069/ellen-hopkins-475_future_the-past-will-influence-your-future-but_536244.png", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/069/ellen-hopkins-475_future_the-past-will-influence-your-future-but_536244.png", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/069/ellen-hopkins-475_future_the-past-will-influence-your-future-but_536244.png", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“the past will influence your future, but it doesn't have to destroy it.” — Ellen Hopkins", "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "creator": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } } }, { "@type": "BreadcrumbList", "itemListElement": [ { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 1, "name": "Home", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 2, "name": "Quotes", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 3, "name": "Ellen Hopkins", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ellen-hopkins/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "“the past will influence your future,...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ellen-hopkins/the-past-will-influence-your-future-but-it-doesn-t-have-to-destroy-it/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ellen-hopkins/the-past-will-influence-your-future-but-it-doesn-t-have-to-destroy-it/#breadcrumb" }, { "@type": "WebSite", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "publisher": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } }, { "@type": "Organization", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "logo": { "@type": "ImageObject", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wp-content/themes/sq/assets/icons/icon-512.png", "width": 512, "height": 512 } } ] } ```