--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: I believe it is within our capacity that…" description: "\"I believe it is within our capacity that by the year 2051 that 51 percent of the human population will be flourishing. That is my charge.\" — Martin Sel..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/83d/martin-seligman-5268_believe_i-believe-it-is-within-our-capacity-that_1928042.png" --- # I believe it is within our capacity that by the year 2051… ![“I believe it is within our capacity that by the year 2051 that 51 percent of the human population will be flourishing. That is my charge.” quote by Martin Seligman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/83d/martin-seligman-5268_believe_i-believe-it-is-within-our-capacity-that_1928042.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/83d/martin-seligman-5268_believe_i-believe-it-is-within-our-capacity-that_1928042.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/83d/martin-seligman-5268_believe_i-believe-it-is-within-our-capacity-that_1928042.png) > “I believe it is within our capacity that by the year 2051 that 51 percent of the human population will be flourishing. That is my charge.” [Martin Seligman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/martin-seligman/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. He predicts that by 2051, a majority of humanity will thrive, expressing optimism and a call to action for well‑being. **In simple terms:** Most people will flourish by 2051. Key Takeaway Work toward creating conditions for widespread flourishing. Themes optimism future well‑being Mood hopeful inspirational Type philosophical motivational When to use this quote - public policy - education reform - mental health initiatives Key Concepts positive psychology social progress Questions to Reflect On - What policies can promote universal flourishing? - How can individuals contribute to collective well‑being? A Different Perspective Achieving global flourishing faces economic and cultural barriers. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Flourishing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/flourishing/) [Human](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/human/) [Human population](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/human-population/) ## Related quotes > [Brain research tells us that only twenty percent of human beings have a sense of irony, which means that eighty percent of the world…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/douglas-coupland/brain-research-tells-us-that-only-twenty-percent-of-human-beings-have/) [Douglas Coupland](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/douglas-coupland/) > [And when you start talking about the practicality of winning a race like that - you've got to remember we're not talking about winning…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hamilton-jordan/and-when-you-start-talking-about-the-practicality-of-winning-a-race/) [Hamilton Jordan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hamilton-jordan/) > [“According to the law professor Richard Sander, more than half of all African-American law students in the United States—51.6 percent—are in the bottom 10…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/malcolm-gladwell/according-to-the-law-professor-richard-sander-more-than-half-of-all/) [Malcolm Gladwell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/malcolm-gladwell/) > [We don't want someone who will get 98 percent of the vote. We want someone who will get 51 percent of the vote.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ann-coulter/we-don-t-want-someone-who-will-get-98-percent-of-the-vote-we-want/) [Ann Coulter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ann-coulter/) > [According to Teenage Research Unlimited, 51 percent of 13-15 year olds say they will be faced with making a decision regarding alcohol in the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/xavier-becerra/according-to-teenage-research-unlimited-51-percent-of-13-15-year-olds/) [Xavier Becerra](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/xavier-becerra/) > [A telephone survey says that 51 percent of college students drink until they pass out at least once a month. The other 49 percent…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/craig-kilborn/a-telephone-survey-says-that-51-percent-of-college-students-drink/) [Craig Kilborn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/craig-kilborn/) > [I played 51 percent of the snaps outside, though. But you can go ahead and call me a slot as well.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/julian-edelman/i-played-51-percent-of-the-snaps-outside-though-but-you-can-go-ahead/) [Julian Edelman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/julian-edelman/) > [I care what 51 percent of the people think about me.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-w-bush/i-care-what-51-percent-of-the-people-think-about-me/) [George W. Bush](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-w-bush/) > [The ninety percent of human experience that does not fit into established narrative patterns falls into oblivion.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mason-cooley/the-ninety-percent-of-human-experience-that-does-not-fit-into/) [Mason Cooley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mason-cooley/) > [If the statistics are right, the Jews constitute but one percent of the human race. It suggests a nebulous dim puff of star dust…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-twain/if-the-statistics-are-right-the-jews-constitute-but-one-percent-of/) [Mark Twain](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-twain/) > [If you're a smart guy, you should really try to find out what women are thinking. I mean, we are 51 percent of the population.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/karin-slaughter/if-you-re-a-smart-guy-you-should-really-try-to-find-out-what-women/) [Karin Slaughter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/karin-slaughter/) > [“A desire not to butt into other people's business is at least eighty percent of all human wisdom.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-a-heinlein/a-desire-not-to-butt-into-other-people-s-business-is-at-least-eighty/) [Robert A. Heinlein](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-a-heinlein/) > [The song 'Paradigm' talks about nanobots - and how they can potentially be used to cure diseases and help you live forever. But how…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/m-shadows/the-song-paradigm-talks-about-nanobots-and-how-they-can-potentially/) [M. Shadows](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/m-shadows/) > [Remember it only takes giving love and good feelings a minimum of 51 percent of the tiem to reach the tipping point and change everything.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rhonda-byrne/remember-it-only-takes-giving-love-and-good-feelings-a-minimum-of-51/) [Rhonda Byrne](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rhonda-byrne/) > [If you do it right 51 percent of the time you will end up a hero.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alfred-p-sloan/if-you-do-it-right-51-percent-of-the-time-you-will-end-up-a-hero/) [Alfred P. Sloan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alfred-p-sloan/) ## More by Martin Seligman > [It used to be that whenever I introduced myself to people and told them I was a psychologist, they would shrink away from me.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/martin-seligman/it-used-to-be-that-whenever-i-introduced-myself-to-people-and-told/) [Martin Seligman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/martin-seligman/) > [I have never worked on interrogation; I have never seen an interrogation, and I have only a passing knowledge of the literature on interrogation.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/martin-seligman/i-have-never-worked-on-interrogation-i-have-never-seen-an/) [Martin Seligman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/martin-seligman/) > [I'm trying to broaden the scope of positive psychology well beyond the smiley face. Happiness is just one-fifth of what human beings choose to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/martin-seligman/i-m-trying-to-broaden-the-scope-of-positive-psychology-well-beyond/) [Martin Seligman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/martin-seligman/) > [It's a matter of ABC: When we encounter ADVERSITY, we react by thinking about it. Our thoughts rapidly congeal into BELIEFS. These beliefs may…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/martin-seligman/it-s-a-matter-of-abc-when-we-encounter-adversity-we-react-by-thinking/) [Martin Seligman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/martin-seligman/) > [One of the things psychologists used to say was that if you are depressed, anxious or angry, you couldn't be happy. Those were at…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/martin-seligman/one-of-the-things-psychologists-used-to-say-was-that-if-you-are/) [Martin Seligman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/martin-seligman/) > [It is the combination of reasonable talent and the ability to keep going in the face of defeat that leads to success.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/martin-seligman/it-is-the-combination-of-reasonable-talent-and-the-ability-to-keep/) [Martin Seligman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/martin-seligman/) > [Psychology is much bigger than just medicine, or fixing unhealthy things. It's about education, work, marriage - it's even about sports. What I want…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/martin-seligman/psychology-is-much-bigger-than-just-medicine-or-fixing-unhealthy/) [Martin Seligman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/martin-seligman/) > [What humans want is not just happiness. They want justice; they want meaning.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/martin-seligman/what-humans-want-is-not-just-happiness-they-want-justice-they-want/) [Martin Seligman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/martin-seligman/) > [I have spent most of my life working with mental illness. I have been president of the world's largest association of mental-illness workers, and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/martin-seligman/i-have-spent-most-of-my-life-working-with-mental-illness-i-have-been/) [Martin Seligman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/martin-seligman/) > [Finding permanent and universal causes for misfortune is the practice of despair...](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/martin-seligman/finding-permanent-and-universal-causes-for-misfortune-is-the-practice/) [Martin Seligman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/martin-seligman/) > [We deprive our children, our charges, of persistence. What I am trying to say is that we need to fail, children need to fail,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/martin-seligman/we-deprive-our-children-our-charges-of-persistence-what-i-am-trying/) [Martin Seligman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/martin-seligman/) > [One of my worries about America is the epidemic of depression we've been in. One of the possibilities about that is that the 'I'…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/martin-seligman/one-of-my-worries-about-america-is-the-epidemic-of-depression-we-ve/) [Martin Seligman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/martin-seligman/) > [The Fundamentalist Religions simply seem to offer more hope for a brighter future than do the more liberal, humanistic ones.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/martin-seligman/the-fundamentalist-religions-simply-seem-to-offer-more-hope-for-a/) [Martin Seligman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/martin-seligman/) > [If the point of the inner-child movement is to cure adult problems, it doesn't work. Reliving childhood traumas gives you a nice afterglow, but…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/martin-seligman/if-the-point-of-the-inner-child-movement-is-to-cure-adult-problems-it/) [Martin Seligman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/martin-seligman/) > [I don't mind being wrong, and I don't mind changing my mind.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/martin-seligman/i-don-t-mind-being-wrong-and-i-don-t-mind-changing-my-mind/) [Martin Seligman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/martin-seligman/) [Explore all 102 Martin Seligman quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/martin-seligman/) ## More Believe quotes > [I actually think acting is a form of self-hypnosis. You have to be hyper, hyper aware of what's going on around you. You have…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/julianne-moore/i-actually-think-acting-is-a-form-of-self-hypnosis-you-have-to-be/) [Julianne Moore](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/julianne-moore/) > [Some people still believe you should just fall in line with what's going on - and that's scary. It makes a mockery of freedom…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/emily-robison/some-people-still-believe-you-should-just-fall-in-line-with-what-s/) [Emily Robison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/emily-robison/) > [The truth seems to be that propaganda on its own cannot force its way into unwilling minds; neither can it inculcate something wholly new;…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eric-hoffer/the-truth-seems-to-be-that-propaganda-on-its-own-cannot-force-its-way/) [Eric Hoffer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eric-hoffer/) > [Resist discouragement by speaking His Word over your future. Keep standing. Keep hoping; keep believing because He is working behind the scenes. He's going…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joel-osteen/resist-discouragement-by-speaking-his-word-over-your-future-keep/) [Joel Osteen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joel-osteen/) > [I can't believe that I'm sitting in meetings with Steven Spielberg, Tom Hanks, and Annette Bening. I want to take on that responsibility to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/roger-ross-williams/i-can-t-believe-that-i-m-sitting-in-meetings-with-steven-spielberg/) [Roger Ross Williams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/roger-ross-williams/) > [There is no such word as item girl in the dictionary. People have created this word and I don't believe that I am an…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/shefali-zariwala/there-is-no-such-word-as-item-girl-in-the-dictionary-people-have/) [Shefali Zariwala](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/shefali-zariwala/) > [I understand that it's the music that keeps me alive... That's my lifeblood. And to give that up for, like, the TV, the cars,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bruce-springsteen/i-understand-that-it-s-the-music-that-keeps-me-alive-that-s-my/) [Bruce Springsteen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bruce-springsteen/) > [I don't really like too much credit. I know nobody's going to believe this, but I'd rather be able to score goals and nobody…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bradley-wright-phillips/i-don-t-really-like-too-much-credit-i-know-nobody-s-going-to-believe/) [Bradley Wright-Phillips](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bradley-wright-phillips/) > [“What I have a problem with is not so much religion or god, but faith. When you say you believe something in your heart…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/penn-jillette/what-i-have-a-problem-with-is-not-so-much-religion-or-god-but-faith/) [Penn Jillette](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/penn-jillette/) > [Bush reiterated his stand to conservatives opposing his decision on stem cell research. He said today he believes life begins at conception and ends…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jay-leno/bush-reiterated-his-stand-to-conservatives-opposing-his-decision-on/) [Jay Leno](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jay-leno/) > [Never underestimate the power of the human mind to believe what it wants to believe, no matter the conflicting evidence.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/brian-herbert/never-underestimate-the-power-of-the-human-mind-to-believe-what-it/) [Brian Herbert](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/brian-herbert/) > [To believe in love, to be ready to give up anything for it, to be willing to risk your life for it, is the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/leonardo-dicaprio/to-believe-in-love-to-be-ready-to-give-up-anything-for-it-to-be/) [Leonardo DiCaprio](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/leonardo-dicaprio/) > [That's why I don't generally talk about endorsements because I don't believe we have to tell people who to vote for.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/martin-luther-king-iii/that-s-why-i-don-t-generally-talk-about-endorsements-because-i-don-t/) [Martin Luther King III](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/martin-luther-king-iii/) > [Mankind have been slow to believe that order reigns in the universe-that the world is a cosmos and a chaos.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-a-garfield/mankind-have-been-slow-to-believe-that-order-reigns-in-the-universe/) [James A. Garfield](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-a-garfield/) > [We instantly believe everything we think. Isn't that insane? It's good for us to explore the depravity of our minds, so we know we…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/krishna-das/we-instantly-believe-everything-we-think-isn-t-that-insane-it-s-good/) [Krishna Das](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/krishna-das/) Browse all 47,704 Believe quotes ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "I believe it is within our capacity that by the year 2051 that 51 percent of the human population will be flourishing. That is my charge.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Martin Seligman" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/martin-seligman/i-believe-it-is-within-our-capacity-that-by-the-year-2051-that-51/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Believe" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/martin-seligman/i-believe-it-is-within-our-capacity-that-by-the-year-2051-that-51/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/83d/martin-seligman-5268_believe_i-believe-it-is-within-our-capacity-that_1928042.png", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/83d/martin-seligman-5268_believe_i-believe-it-is-within-our-capacity-that_1928042.png", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/83d/martin-seligman-5268_believe_i-believe-it-is-within-our-capacity-that_1928042.png", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“I believe it is within our capacity that by the year 2051 that 51 percent of the human population will be…” — Martin Seligman", "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": "Martin Seligman", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/martin-seligman/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "I believe it is within our...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/martin-seligman/i-believe-it-is-within-our-capacity-that-by-the-year-2051-that-51/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/martin-seligman/i-believe-it-is-within-our-capacity-that-by-the-year-2051-that-51/#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 } } ] } ```