---
title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Future benefits rarely figure in the…"
description: "\"Future benefits rarely figure in the minds of animals.\" — Frans de Waal"
image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/1d4/frans-de-waal-2997_animal_future-benefits-rarely-figure-in-the-min_1439603.png"
---

#  Future benefits rarely figure in the minds of animals.

![“Future benefits rarely figure in the minds of animals.” quote by Frans de Waal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/1d4/frans-de-waal-2997_animal_future-benefits-rarely-figure-in-the-min_1439603.png)   [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/1d4/frans-de-waal-2997_animal_future-benefits-rarely-figure-in-the-min_1439603.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/1d4/frans-de-waal-2997_animal_future-benefits-rarely-figure-in-the-min_1439603.png)

> “Future benefits rarely figure in the minds of animals.”

[Frans de Waal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frans-de-waal/)

## About This Quote

This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation.

Animals rarely consider future benefits, focusing on immediate needs.

**In simple terms:** Animals think short term.

Key Takeaway

Consider long-term impacts beyond immediate desires.

Themes

animals future psychology behavior

Mood

analytical concerned

Type

psychological educational

When to use this quote

- animal behavior
- environmental policy
- personal finance

Key Concepts

cognitive bias temporal discounting

Questions to Reflect On

- What prevents us from planning ahead?
- How can we train future-oriented thinking?

A Different Perspective

Humans can learn from animals to improve foresight.

★ ★ ★ ★ ★   No ratings yet

[Animal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/animal/) [Animals](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/animals/) [Benefits](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/benefits/) [Benefits Rarely](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/benefits-rarely-3230473/) [Figures](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/figures/) [Future Benefits](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/future-benefits-5148705/) [Mind](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/mind/) [Minds Animals](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/minds-animals-2969438/) [Psychology](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/psychology/) [Rarely Figure](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/rarely-figure-5148704/) [Time](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/time/)

## Related quotes

> [No matter how much the private sector crows that corporate tax breaks will lead to more jobs or robust economic activity, such benefits rarely…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rashida-tlaib/no-matter-how-much-the-private-sector-crows-that-corporate-tax-breaks/)

[Rashida Tlaib](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rashida-tlaib/)

> [Benefits are rarely made public in filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission, where companies must report the pay and options that their five…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alex-berenson/benefits-are-rarely-made-public-in-filings-with-the-securities-and/)

[Alex Berenson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alex-berenson/)

> [Even the minds of animals, such as dogs, lions, cats, and serpents, become charmed with music.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/swami-vivekananda/even-the-minds-of-animals-such-as-dogs-lions-cats-and-serpents-become/)

[Swami Vivekananda](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/swami-vivekananda/)

> [Amongst the minds of animals that of man leads, not as a demigod from another planet, but as a king from the same race.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edward-thorndike/amongst-the-minds-of-animals-that-of-man-leads-not-as-a-demigod-from/)

[Edward Thorndike](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edward-thorndike/)

> [Cats are a standing rebuke to behavioral scientists wanting to know how the minds of animals work. The mind of a cat is an…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lewis-thomas/cats-are-a-standing-rebuke-to-behavioral-scientists-wanting-to-know/)

[Lewis Thomas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lewis-thomas/)

> [Let us think of education as the means of developing our greatest abilities, because in each of us there is a private hope and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/let-us-think-of-education-as-the-means-of-developing-our-greatest/)

[Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/)

> [Neither novels or their readers benefit from any attempts to divine whether any facts hide inside a story. Such efforts attack the very idea…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-green/neither-novels-or-their-readers-benefit-from-any-attempts-to-divine/)

[John Green](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-green/)

> [Trust is about keeping commitments, but in many instances, circumstances change and organizations therefore shed commitments, things such as retiree medical benefits, pension obligations,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jeffrey-pfeffer/trust-is-about-keeping-commitments-but-in-many-instances/)

[Jeffrey Pfeffer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jeffrey-pfeffer/)

> [Therefore, I see whatever exists as good, death is to me like life, sin like holiness, wisdom like foolishness, everything has to be as…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hermann-hesse/therefore-i-see-whatever-exists-as-good-death-is-to-me-like-life-sin/)

[Hermann Hesse](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hermann-hesse/)

> [Politics is about power. It is about the power of the state. It is about the power of the state as applied to individuals,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kevin-rudd/politics-is-about-power-it-is-about-the-power-of-the-state-it-is/)

[Kevin Rudd](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kevin-rudd/)

> [That old man dies prematurely whose memory records no benefits conferred. They only have lived long who have lived virtuously.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-brinsley-sheridan/that-old-man-dies-prematurely-whose-memory-records-no-benefits/)

[Richard Brinsley Sheridan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-brinsley-sheridan/)

> [Shortly after I turned 50, both Ted Turner and the AARP came into my life. The only difference? With AARP, there were benefits.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jane-fonda/shortly-after-i-turned-50-both-ted-turner-and-the-aarp-came-into-my/)

[Jane Fonda](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jane-fonda/)

> [Anger is a rough water; if you can canalize it into a water mill, you can benefit from it. Anything bad can be transformed…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mehmet-murat-ildan/anger-is-a-rough-water-if-you-can-canalize-it-into-a-water-mill-you/)

[Mehmet Murat Ildan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mehmet-murat-ildan/)

> [ \[The Dalai Lama\] told me some years ago, "I've made every concession to China, and I've been as open and tolerant as I could,… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pico-iyer/the-dalai-lama-told-me-some-years-ago-i-ve-made-every-concession-to/)

[Pico Iyer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pico-iyer/)

> [If the members of parliament no longer consider themselves mandatories of the taxpayers but deputies of those receiving salaries, wages, subsidies, doles, and other…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ludwig-von-mises/if-the-members-of-parliament-no-longer-consider-themselves/)

[Ludwig von Mises](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ludwig-von-mises/)

## More by Frans de Waal

> [Dogmatists have one advantage: they are poor listeners.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frans-de-waal/dogmatists-have-one-advantage-they-are-poor-listeners/)

[Frans de Waal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frans-de-waal/)

> [If both parties have a stake in the other, the chances of them killing each other are going to be reduced.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frans-de-waal/if-both-parties-have-a-stake-in-the-other-the-chances-of-them-killing/)

[Frans de Waal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frans-de-waal/)

> [I sometimes try to imagine what would have happened if we’d known the bonobo first and the chimpanzee only later—or not at all. The…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frans-de-waal/i-sometimes-try-to-imagine-what-would-have-happened-if-we-d-known-the/)

[Frans de Waal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frans-de-waal/)

> [Unlike the primate hand, the elephant's grasping organ is also its nose. Elephants use their trunks not only to reach food but also to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frans-de-waal/unlike-the-primate-hand-the-elephant-s-grasping-organ-is-also-its/)

[Frans de Waal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frans-de-waal/)

> [Science is not inherently good.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frans-de-waal/science-is-not-inherently-good/)

[Frans de Waal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frans-de-waal/)

> [The possibility that empathy resides in parts of the brain so ancient that we share them with rats should give pause to anyone comparing…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frans-de-waal/the-possibility-that-empathy-resides-in-parts-of-the-brain-so-ancient/)

[Frans de Waal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frans-de-waal/)

> [“on August 16, 1996, when an eight-year-old female gorilla named Binti Jua helped a three-year-old boy who had fallen eighteen feet into the primate…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frans-de-waal/on-august-16-1996-when-an-eight-year-old-female-gorilla-named-binti/)

[Frans de Waal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frans-de-waal/)

> [We start out postulating sharp boundaries, such as between humans and apes, or between apes and monkeys, but are in fact dealing with sand…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frans-de-waal/we-start-out-postulating-sharp-boundaries-such-as-between-humans-and/)

[Frans de Waal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frans-de-waal/)

> [Perhaps it's just me, but I am wary of any persons whose belief system is the only thing standing between them and repulsive behavior.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frans-de-waal/perhaps-it-s-just-me-but-i-am-wary-of-any-persons-whose-belief-system/)

[Frans de Waal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frans-de-waal/)

> [Personally, I think it is possible to build a society that is moral on a nonreligious basis, but the jury is still out on…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frans-de-waal/personally-i-think-it-is-possible-to-build-a-society-that-is-moral-on/)

[Frans de Waal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frans-de-waal/)

> [“humans are a strange lot. We have the power to analyze and explore the world around us, yet panic as soon as the evidence…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frans-de-waal/humans-are-a-strange-lot-we-have-the-power-to-analyze-and-explore-the/)

[Frans de Waal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frans-de-waal/)

> [Armies are a purely human invention. Most soldiers who go to war nowadays don't even do it because they're inherently aggressive.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frans-de-waal/armies-are-a-purely-human-invention-most-soldiers-who-go-to-war/)

[Frans de Waal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frans-de-waal/)

> [There's actually a lot of evidence in primates and other animals that they return favors.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frans-de-waal/there-s-actually-a-lot-of-evidence-in-primates-and-other-animals-that/)

[Frans de Waal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frans-de-waal/)

> [“In a world divided by chimpophiles and bonobophiles, we all had a good laugh when Stephen peeled his banana. (62)”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frans-de-waal/in-a-world-divided-by-chimpophiles-and-bonobophiles-we-all-had-a-good/)

[Frans de Waal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frans-de-waal/)

> [In Africa, we have the bush meat trade, which means that, on a very large scale, animals are being killed in the forests and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frans-de-waal/in-africa-we-have-the-bush-meat-trade-which-means-that-on-a-very/)

[Frans de Waal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frans-de-waal/)

[Explore all 143 Frans de Waal quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frans-de-waal/)

## More Animal quotes

> [I was 3-years-old - to this day it is a vivid memory. My family and I were on a boat, catching fish. As one…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joaquin-phoenix/i-was-3-years-old-to-this-day-it-is-a-vivid-memory-my-family-and-i/)

[Joaquin Phoenix](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joaquin-phoenix/)

> [Animals know nothing of themselves, and they also know nothing of the world.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/friedrich-nietzsche/animals-know-nothing-of-themselves-and-they-also-know-nothing-of-the/)

[Friedrich Nietzsche](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/friedrich-nietzsche/)

> [Humans are animals too, but some do not like to work from expectations.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mak-786/humans-are-animals-too-but-some-do-not-like-to-work-from-expectations/)

[Mak\_786](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mak-786/)

> [When grubbing for necessities man is still an animal. He becomes uniquely human when he reaches out for the superfluous and extravagant.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eric-hoffer/when-grubbing-for-necessities-man-is-still-an-animal-he-becomes/)

[Eric Hoffer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eric-hoffer/)

> [I'm 38 and I'm single, and I'm having my most intense and gratifying relationship with a dog. But we all learn about love in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/caroline-knapp/i-m-38-and-i-m-single-and-i-m-having-my-most-intense-and-gratifying/)

[Caroline Knapp](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/caroline-knapp/)

> [Practically all animals which move fast in a homogeneous medium have found means of giving their body a streamlined shape, thereby reducing friction to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/konrad-lorenz/practically-all-animals-which-move-fast-in-a-homogeneous-medium-have/)

[Konrad Lorenz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/konrad-lorenz/)

> [A horse, a horse, my kingdom for a horse!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-shakespeare/a-horse-a-horse-my-kingdom-for-a-horse/)

[William Shakespeare](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-shakespeare/)

> [“it is a federal system of sadistic torture, vivisection, and animal genocide, which has been carried on for decades under the fraudulent guise of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-tobias/it-is-a-federal-system-of-sadistic-torture-vivisection-and-animal/)

[Michael Tobias](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-tobias/)

> [“What does it mean to be a self-conscious animal? The idea is ludicrous, if it is not monstrous. It means to know that one…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ernest-becker/what-does-it-mean-to-be-a-self-conscious-animal-the-idea-is-ludicrous/)

[Ernest Becker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ernest-becker/)

> [We must love animals in such a powerful way that we should reject to eat them!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mehmet-murat-ildan/we-must-love-animals-in-such-a-powerful-way-that-we-should-reject-to/)

[Mehmet Murat Ildan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mehmet-murat-ildan/)

> [“The universe contains any amount of horrible ways to be woken up, such as the noise of the mob breaking down the front door,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/terry-pratchett/the-universe-contains-any-amount-of-horrible-ways-to-be-woken-up-such/)

[Terry Pratchett](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/terry-pratchett/)

> [This brings me back to the image of Kafka standing before a fish in the Berlin aquarium, a fish on which his gaze fell…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jonathan-safran-foer/this-brings-me-back-to-the-image-of-kafka-standing-before-a-fish-in/)

[Jonathan Safran Foer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jonathan-safran-foer/)

> [That dog, I say that dog is lower than a snake full of buckshot.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/foghorn-leghorn/that-dog-i-say-that-dog-is-lower-than-a-snake-full-of-buckshot/)

[Foghorn Leghorn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/foghorn-leghorn/)

> [I bet plants go like 'Weeeeeeeee!' whenever they're swallowed by a giraffe.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/i-bet-plants-go-like-weeeeeeeee-whenever-they-re-swallowed-by-a/)

[Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/)

> [Animal rights without veganism is like human rights with slavery. It makes no sense. None whatsoever.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gary-l-francione/animal-rights-without-veganism-is-like-human-rights-with-slavery-it/)

[Gary L. Francione](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gary-l-francione/)

[Browse all 13,456 Animal quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/animal/)

```json
{
    "@context": "https://schema.org",
    "@graph": [
        {
            "@type": "Quotation",
            "text": "Future benefits rarely figure in the minds of animals.",
            "creator": {
                "@type": "Person",
                "name": "Frans de Waal"
            },
            "isPartOf": {
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website"
            },
            "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frans-de-waal/future-benefits-rarely-figure-in-the-minds-of-animals/",
            "about": {
                "@type": "Thing",
                "name": "Animal"
            },
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frans-de-waal/future-benefits-rarely-figure-in-the-minds-of-animals/#quotation",
            "image": {
                "@type": "ImageObject",
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/1d4/frans-de-waal-2997_animal_future-benefits-rarely-figure-in-the-min_1439603.png",
                "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/1d4/frans-de-waal-2997_animal_future-benefits-rarely-figure-in-the-min_1439603.png",
                "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/1d4/frans-de-waal-2997_animal_future-benefits-rarely-figure-in-the-min_1439603.png",
                "width": 1080,
                "height": 1080,
                "caption": "“Future benefits rarely figure in the minds of animals.” — Frans de Waal",
                "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": "Frans de Waal",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frans-de-waal/"
                },
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 4,
                    "name": "Future benefits rarely figure in the...",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frans-de-waal/future-benefits-rarely-figure-in-the-minds-of-animals/"
                }
            ],
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frans-de-waal/future-benefits-rarely-figure-in-the-minds-of-animals/#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
            }
        }
    ]
}
```
