--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: We must shed the illusion that we can…" description: "\"We must shed the illusion that we can deliberately \"create the future of mankind.\" This is the final conclusion of the forty years which I have now dev..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/bce/friedrich-august-von-hayek-141_conclusion_we-must-shed-the-illusion-that-we-can-de_1302944.jpg" --- # We must shed the illusion that we can deliberately "create… ![“We must shed the illusion that we can deliberately "create the future of mankind." This is the final conclusion of the forty years which I have now devoted to the study of these problems” quote by Friedrich August von Hayek](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/bce/friedrich-august-von-hayek-141_conclusion_we-must-shed-the-illusion-that-we-can-de_1302944.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/bce/friedrich-august-von-hayek-141_conclusion_we-must-shed-the-illusion-that-we-can-de_1302944.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/bce/friedrich-august-von-hayek-141_conclusion_we-must-shed-the-illusion-that-we-can-de_1302944.jpg) > “We must shed the illusion that we can deliberately "create the future of mankind." This is the final conclusion of the forty years which I have now devoted to the study of these problems” [Friedrich August von Hayek](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/friedrich-august-von-hayek/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. We cannot control or design humanity’s future; attempts to do so are illusionary and hubristic. **In simple terms:** Future cannot be deliberately created. Key Takeaway Accept uncertainty, focus on freedom. Themes freedom uncertainty human nature policy hubris Mood cautious reflective skeptical Type political philosophical critical When to use this quote - government policy - economic forecasting - technological development - social engineering Key Concepts spontaneous order knowledge problem limits of planning Questions to Reflect On - How do you balance planning with openness to change? - What risks arise from trying to engineer society? A Different Perspective Even with expertise, predicting complex societies is unreliable. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Conclusion](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/conclusion/) [Conclusion Years](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/conclusion-years-1583763/) [Devoted](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/devoted/) [Final Conclusion](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/final-conclusion-4285314/) [Finals](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/finals/) [Forty](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/forty/) [Future Mankind](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/future-mankind-255322/) [Future of mankind](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/future-of-mankind/) [Illusion](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/illusion/) [Mankind](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/mankind/) [Mankind Final](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/mankind-final-854071/) [Nature of man](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/nature-of-man/) [Problem](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/problem/) [Shed](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/shed/) [Study](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/study/) [Time](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/time/) [Years](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/years/) ## Related quotes > [We must shed the illusion that we can deliberately 'create the future of mankind'](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/friedrich-august-von-hayek/we-must-shed-the-illusion-that-we-can-deliberately-create-the-future-2/) [Friedrich August von Hayek](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/friedrich-august-von-hayek/) > [The future of mankind lies waiting for those who will come to understand their lives and take up their responsibilities to all living things.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/vine-deloria-jr/the-future-of-mankind-lies-waiting-for-those-who-will-come-to/) [Vine Deloria Jr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/vine-deloria-jr/) > [Science is the future of mankind.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/claude-cohen-tannoudji/science-is-the-future-of-mankind/) [Claude Cohen-Tannoudji](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/claude-cohen-tannoudji/) > [What's the future of mankind? How do I know, I got left behind.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ozzy-osbourne/what-s-the-future-of-mankind-how-do-i-know-i-got-left-behind/) [Ozzy Osbourne](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ozzy-osbourne/) > [The final conclusion of the absurdist protest is, in fact, the rejection of suicide and persistence in that hopeless encounter between human questioning and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/albert-camus/the-final-conclusion-of-the-absurdist-protest-is-in-fact-the/) [Albert Camus](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/albert-camus/) > [I have come to the conclusion, after many years of sometimes sad experience, that you cannot come to any conclusion at all.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/vita-sackville-west/i-have-come-to-the-conclusion-after-many-years-of-sometimes-sad/) [Vita Sackville-West](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/vita-sackville-west/) > [“No eloquence could have been so withering to one's belief in mankind as his final burst of sincerity.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joseph-conrad/no-eloquence-could-have-been-so-withering-to-one-s-belief-in-mankind/) [Joseph Conrad](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joseph-conrad/) > [“We do not know the future, but we are creating it now. 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It is a fact.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/shirley-chisholm/it-is-not-female-egotism-to-say-that-the-future-of-mankind-may-very/) [Shirley Chisholm](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/shirley-chisholm/) > [The future of mankind seems to be a religious one, and religion can be a way for the modern man or the man of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sorin-cerin/the-future-of-mankind-seems-to-be-a-religious-one-and-religion-can-be-2/) [Sorin Cerin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sorin-cerin/) > [Hemp will be the future of all mankind, or there won't be a future.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jack-herer/hemp-will-be-the-future-of-all-mankind-or-there-won-t-be-a-future/) [Jack Herer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jack-herer/) > [Capitalism is not the system of the past; it is the system of the future -- if mankind is to have a future](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ayn-rand/capitalism-is-not-the-system-of-the-past-it-is-the-system-of-the/) [Ayn Rand](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ayn-rand/) > [Children are the future, because mankind is moving more and more towards infancy.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/milan-kundera/children-are-the-future-because-mankind-is-moving-more-and-more/) [Milan Kundera](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/milan-kundera/) > [The future of mankind is going to be decided within the next two generations, and there are two absolute requisites: We must aim at…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jacques-monod/the-future-of-mankind-is-going-to-be-decided-within-the-next-two/) [Jacques Monod](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jacques-monod/) > [“We have reached the end of one era, and now we don't know what is all around us. Because we're already in a new…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/l-szl-krasznahorkai/we-have-reached-the-end-of-one-era-and-now-we-don-t-know-what-is-all/) [László Krasznahorkai](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/l-szl-krasznahorkai/) ## More by Friedrich August von Hayek > [The system of private property is the most important guaranty of freedom, not only for those who own property, but scarcely less for those…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/friedrich-august-von-hayek/the-system-of-private-property-is-the-most-important-guaranty-of/) [Friedrich August von Hayek](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/friedrich-august-von-hayek/) > [By the time any view becomes a majority view, it is no longer the best view: somebody will already have advanced beyond the point…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/friedrich-august-von-hayek/by-the-time-any-view-becomes-a-majority-view-it-is-no-longer-the-best/) [Friedrich August von Hayek](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/friedrich-august-von-hayek/) > [Freedom can be preserved only if it is treated as a supreme principle which must not be sacrificed for particular advantages.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/friedrich-august-von-hayek/freedom-can-be-preserved-only-if-it-is-treated-as-a-supreme-principle/) [Friedrich August von Hayek](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/friedrich-august-von-hayek/) > [Should our moral beliefs really prove to be dependent on factual assumptions shown to be incorrect, it would be hardly moral to defend them…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/friedrich-august-von-hayek/should-our-moral-beliefs-really-prove-to-be-dependent-on-factual/) [Friedrich August von Hayek](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/friedrich-august-von-hayek/) > [It is true that the virtues which are less esteemed and practiced now--independence, self-reliance, and the willingness to bear risks, the readiness to back…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/friedrich-august-von-hayek/it-is-true-that-the-virtues-which-are-less-esteemed-and-practiced-now/) [Friedrich August von Hayek](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/friedrich-august-von-hayek/) > [Unlike the rationalism of the French Revolution, true liberalism has no quarrel with religion, and I can only deplore the militant and essentially illiberal…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/friedrich-august-von-hayek/unlike-the-rationalism-of-the-french-revolution-true-liberalism-has/) [Friedrich August von Hayek](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/friedrich-august-von-hayek/) > [We must make the building of a free society once more an intellectual adventure, a deed of courage… Unless we can make the philosophic…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/friedrich-august-von-hayek/we-must-make-the-building-of-a-free-society-once-more-an-intellectual/) [Friedrich August von Hayek](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/friedrich-august-von-hayek/) > [The central problem of management is how spontaneous interaction of people within a firm, each possessing only bits of knowledge, can bring about the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/friedrich-august-von-hayek/the-central-problem-of-management-is-how-spontaneous-interaction-of/) [Friedrich August von Hayek](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/friedrich-august-von-hayek/) > [The discussions of every age are filled with the issues on which its leading schools of thought differ. But the general intellectual atmosphere of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/friedrich-august-von-hayek/the-discussions-of-every-age-are-filled-with-the-issues-on-which-its/) [Friedrich August von Hayek](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/friedrich-august-von-hayek/) > [The Nobel Prize confers on an individual an authority which in economics no man ought to possess.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/friedrich-august-von-hayek/the-nobel-prize-confers-on-an-individual-an-authority-which-in/) [Friedrich August von Hayek](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/friedrich-august-von-hayek/) > [ \[Socialistic\] economic planning, regulation, and intervention pave the way to totalitarianism by building a power structure that will inevitably be seized by the most… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/friedrich-august-von-hayek/socialistic-economic-planning-regulation-and-intervention-pave-the/) [Friedrich August von Hayek](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/friedrich-august-von-hayek/) > [It is rather a problem of how to secure the best use of resources known to any of the members of society, for ends…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/friedrich-august-von-hayek/it-is-rather-a-problem-of-how-to-secure-the-best-use-of-resources/) [Friedrich August von Hayek](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/friedrich-august-von-hayek/) > [The state itself becomes more and more identified with the interests of those who run things than with the interests of the people in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/friedrich-august-von-hayek/the-state-itself-becomes-more-and-more-identified-with-the-interests/) [Friedrich August von Hayek](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/friedrich-august-von-hayek/) > [We must face the fact that the preservation of individual freedom is incompatible with a full satisfaction of our views of distributive justice.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/friedrich-august-von-hayek/we-must-face-the-fact-that-the-preservation-of-individual-freedom-is/) [Friedrich August von Hayek](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/friedrich-august-von-hayek/) > [Human envy is certainly not one of the sources of discontent that a free society can eliminate. It is probably one of the essential…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/friedrich-august-von-hayek/human-envy-is-certainly-not-one-of-the-sources-of-discontent-that-a/) [Friedrich August von Hayek](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/friedrich-august-von-hayek/) [Explore all 244 Friedrich August von Hayek quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/friedrich-august-von-hayek/) ## More Conclusion quotes > [I'm not going to be part of looking at information only partially. I'm not going to be part of just coming to quick conclusions.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/max-cleland/i-m-not-going-to-be-part-of-looking-at-information-only-partially-i-m/) [Max Cleland](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/max-cleland/) > [From what I have seen, I am driven to the conclusion that religion is only good for good people.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mary-mccarthy/from-what-i-have-seen-i-am-driven-to-the-conclusion-that-religion-is/) [Mary McCarthy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mary-mccarthy/) > [The thing about living alone is that it gives you a lot of time to think. You don't necessarily reach any conclusions, because wisdom…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jonathan-tropper/the-thing-about-living-alone-is-that-it-gives-you-a-lot-of-time-to/) [Jonathan Tropper](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jonathan-tropper/) > [The main conclusion here arrived at ... is that man is descended from some less highly organized form.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-darwin/the-main-conclusion-here-arrived-at-is-that-man-is-descended-from/) [Charles Darwin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-darwin/) > [Your deeper sense isn’t a springboard; it’s a landing place. If you draw conclusions too quickly or too slowly, you’ll establish your self where…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-de-ruiter/your-deeper-sense-isn-t-a-springboard-it-s-a-landing-place-if-you/) [John de Ruiter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-de-ruiter/) > [When there is a mission before you, you see it from its beginning to its conclusion.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jesse-white/when-there-is-a-mission-before-you-you-see-it-from-its-beginning-to/) [Jesse White](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jesse-white/) > [Every study on chocolate is pointing to the same conclusion: there is something in chocolate that is really good for us. That something is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-wolfe/every-study-on-chocolate-is-pointing-to-the-same-conclusion-there-is/) [David Wolfe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-wolfe/) > [I have come to the definite conclusion that musical ability is not an inborn talent but an ability which can be developed.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/shinichi-suzuki/i-have-come-to-the-definite-conclusion-that-musical-ability-is-not-an/) [Shinichi Suzuki](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/shinichi-suzuki/) > [Study how a society uses its land, and you can come to pretty reliable conclusions as to what its future will be.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/e-f-schumacher/study-how-a-society-uses-its-land-and-you-can-come-to-pretty-reliable/) [E. F. Schumacher](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/e-f-schumacher/) > [Dr. Arnold . . . the admired reformer of public schools, came across some cranks who thought it a mistake to flog boys. Anyone…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bertrand-russell/dr-arnold-the-admired-reformer-of-public-schools-came-across-some/) [Bertrand Russell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bertrand-russell/) > [That's what politics is. It's the story of what's happening, what does it mean, what's the conclusion, who are the interesting characters?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-dickerson/that-s-what-politics-is-it-s-the-story-of-what-s-happening-what-does/) [John Dickerson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-dickerson/) > [It's my firm conclusion that human meaning comes from humans, not from a supernatural source. After we die, our hopes for an afterlife reside…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/greg-graffin/it-s-my-firm-conclusion-that-human-meaning-comes-from-humans-not-from/) [Greg Graffin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/greg-graffin/) > [To each eye, perhaps, the outlines of a great civilization present a different picture. In the wide ocean upon which we venture, the possible…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jacob-burckhardt/to-each-eye-perhaps-the-outlines-of-a-great-civilization-present-a/) [Jacob Burckhardt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jacob-burckhardt/) > [If you jump to conclusion you can't step on a clue.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-santinello/if-you-jump-to-conclusion-you-can-t-step-on-a-clue/) [James Santinello](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-santinello/) > [I cannot escape from the conclusion that the great ages of progress have depended upon a small number of individuals of transcendent ability.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bertrand-russell/i-cannot-escape-from-the-conclusion-that-the-great-ages-of-progress/) [Bertrand Russell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bertrand-russell/) [Browse all 1,619 Conclusion quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/conclusion/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "We must shed the illusion that we can deliberately \"create the future of mankind.\" This is the final conclusion of the forty years which I have now devoted to the study of these problems", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Friedrich August von Hayek" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/friedrich-august-von-hayek/we-must-shed-the-illusion-that-we-can-deliberately-create-the-future/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Conclusion" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/friedrich-august-von-hayek/we-must-shed-the-illusion-that-we-can-deliberately-create-the-future/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/bce/friedrich-august-von-hayek-141_conclusion_we-must-shed-the-illusion-that-we-can-de_1302944.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/bce/friedrich-august-von-hayek-141_conclusion_we-must-shed-the-illusion-that-we-can-de_1302944.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/bce/friedrich-august-von-hayek-141_conclusion_we-must-shed-the-illusion-that-we-can-de_1302944.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“We must shed the illusion that we can deliberately \"create the future of mankind.\" This is the final…” — Friedrich August von Hayek", "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": "Friedrich August von Hayek", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/friedrich-august-von-hayek/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "We must shed the illusion that...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/friedrich-august-von-hayek/we-must-shed-the-illusion-that-we-can-deliberately-create-the-future/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/friedrich-august-von-hayek/we-must-shed-the-illusion-that-we-can-deliberately-create-the-future/#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 } } ] } ```