Quotes about the future
page 10

Winston S. Churchill photo

“Of this I am quite sure, that if we open a quarrel between the past and the present, we shall find that we have lost the future.”

Speech in the House of Commons, June 18, 1940 "War Situation" http://hansard.millbanksystems.com/commons/1940/jun/18/war-situation#column_52.
The Second World War (1939–1945)

John F. Kennedy photo

“Change is the law of life. And those who look only to the past or the present are certain to miss the future.”

John F. Kennedy (1917–1963) 35th president of the United States of America

Variant: Change is the law of life. And those who look only to the past or present are certain to miss the future.

Elie Wiesel photo
Don DeLillo photo

“The future belongs to crowds”

At Yankee Stadium
Source: Mao II (1991)

Patrick Rothfuss photo
Richelle Mead photo

“Let me get this straight. The future of our relationship hinged on advice from a fifteen-year-old girl, a probably untrue story from a one-eyed Chihuahua trainer, and me unromantically - yet skillfully - kissing you on top of silverware and china?”

Variant: The future of our relationship hinged on advice from a fifteen-year old girl, a probably untrue story from a one-eyed Chihuahua trainer, and me unromantically – yet skillfully – kissing you on top of silverware and china?
Source: The Indigo Spell

Winston S. Churchill photo

“The empires of the future are the empires of the mind.”

Speech at Harvard University, September 6, 1943 ( full text https://www.winstonchurchill.org/resources/speeches/1941-1945-war-leader/the-price-of-greatness-is-responsibility, audio https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ESiuSi8Qp9U).
The Second World War (1939–1945)

Oprah Winfrey photo
Peter F. Drucker photo
Dwight D. Eisenhower photo

“Neither a wise man or a brave man lies down on the tracks of history to wait for the train of the future to run over him.”

Dwight D. Eisenhower (1890–1969) American general and politician, 34th president of the United States (in office from 1953 to 1961)

As quoted in TIME magazine (6 October 1952)
1950s

Michael Ende photo

“Without a past you can't have a future.”

Source: The Neverending Story

Ram Dass photo
Alan Lightman photo
Ramachandra Guha photo

“What is now in the past was once in the future”

Ramachandra Guha (1958) historian and writer from India

Source: India After Gandhi: The History of the World's Largest Democracy

Christopher Moore photo
Pearl S.  Buck photo
Albert Einstein photo

“The religion of the future will be cosmic religion. It will transcend personal God and avoid dogma and theology.”

Albert Einstein (1879–1955) German-born physicist and founder of the theory of relativity

Misattributed
Variant: The religion of the future will be a cosmic religion. It should transcend a personal God and avoid dogmas and theology. Covering both the natural and the spiritual, it should be based on a religious sense arising from the experience of all things, natural and spiritual as a meaningful unity. If there is any religion that would cope with modern scientific needs, it would be Buddhism.
These two statements are very similar, widely quoted, and seem to paraphrase some ideas in the essay "Religion and Science" (see below), but neither of the two specific quotes above been properly sourced. Notable Einstein scholars such as John Stachel and Thomas J. McFarlane (author of Buddha and Einstein: The Parallel Sayings) know of this statement but have not found any source for it. Any information on any definite original sources for these is welcome.
This quote does not actually appear in Albert Einstein: The Human Side as is sometimes claimed.
Only two sources from before 1970 can be found on Google Books. The first is The Theosophist: Volume 86 which seems to cover the years 1964 http://books.google.com/books?id=7pLjAAAAMAAJ&q=1964#search_anchor and 1965 http://books.google.com/books?id=7pLjAAAAMAAJ&q=1965#search_anchor. The quote appears attributed to Einstein on p. 255 http://books.google.com/books?id=7pLjAAAAMAAJ&q=%22natural+and+spiritual%22#search_anchor, with the wording given as "The religion of the future will be a cosmic religion. It should transcend a personal God and avoid dogmas and theology. Covering both the natural and the spiritual, it should be based on a religious sense arising from the experience of all things, natural and spiritual, as a meaningful unity. Buddhism answers this description." An identical quote appears on p. 284 http://books.google.com/books?id=YpsfAQAAIAAJ&q=%22dogmas+and+theology%22#search_anchor of The Maha Bodhi: Volume 72 published by the Maha Bodhi Society of India, which seems to contain issues from throughout 1964 http://books.google.com/books?id=YpsfAQAAIAAJ&q=%22volume+72%22#search_anchor.
A number of phrases in the quote are similar to phrases in Einstein's "Religion and Science". Comparing the version of the quote in The Theosophist to the version of "Religion and Science" published in 1930, "a cosmic religion" in the first resembles "the cosmic religious sense" in the second; "transcend a personal God" resembles "does not involve an anthropomorphic idea of God"; "covering both the natural and the spiritual" resembles "revealed in nature and in the world of thought"; "the experience of all things, natural and spiritual, as a meaningful unity" resembles "experience the totality of existence as a unity full of significance"; and "Buddhism answers this description" resembles "The cosmic element is much stronger in Buddhism". These phrases appear in the same order in both cases, and the ones from "Religion and Science" are all from a single paragraph of the essay.
Context: Buddhism has the characteristics of what would be expected in a cosmic religion for the future: It transcends a personal God, avoids dogmas and theology; it covers both the natural and the spiritual, and it is based on a religious sense aspiring from the experience of all things, natural and spiritual, as a meaningful unity.

John F. Kennedy photo

“Let us not despair but act. Let us not seek the Republican answer or the Democratic answer but the right answer. Let us not seek to fix the blame for the past — let us accept our own responsibility for the future.”

John F. Kennedy (1917–1963) 35th president of the United States of America

Remarks at "Loyola College Alumni Banquet, Baltimore, Maryland (18 February 1958) http://www.jfklibrary.org/Research/Research-Aids/Ready-Reference/JFK-Quotations.aspx; Box 899, Senate Speech Files, John F. Kennedy Papers, Pre-Presidential Papers, John F. Kennedy Presidential Library
Pre-1960

Alexandre Dumas photo
André Gide photo
Albert Einstein photo

“Now he has departed from this strange world a little ahead of me. That means nothing. People like us, who believe in physics, know that the distinction between past, present, and future is only a stubbornly persistent illusion.”

Albert Einstein (1879–1955) German-born physicist and founder of the theory of relativity

Letter to Besso's family (March 1955) following the death of Michele Besso, as quoted in Disturbing the Universe (1979) by Freeman Dyson Ch. 17 "A Distant Mirror", p. 193
Sometimes misquoted as "Reality is merely an illusion, albeit a very persistent one."
1950s
Variant: "He has departed from this strange world a little ahead of me. That means nothing. For us believing physicists, the distinction between past, present and future is only a stubborn illusion." Quoted in Einstein: His Life and Universe by Walter Isaacson (2008), p. 540 http://books.google.com/books?id=cdxWNE7NY6QC&lpg=PP1&pg=PA540#v=onepage&q&f=false.
Variant: "Now he has departed from this strange world a little ahead of me. That signifies nothing. For us believing physicists, the distinction between past, present, and future is only a stubbornly persistent illusion." Quoted in Albert Einstein: The Miracle Mind by Tabatha Yeatts (2007), p. 116 http://books.google.com/books?id=XiyyVYvQBKQC&lpg=PP1&pg=PT114#v=onepage&q&f=false.
Variant: "In quitting this strange world he has once again preceded me by a little. That doesn't mean anything. For those of us who believe in physics, this separation between past, present, and future is only an illusion, however tenacious." Quoted in The Structure of Physics by Carl Friedrich von Weizsäcker (1985), p. 288 http://books.google.com/books?id=DeexONN0zDgC&lpg=PR2&pg=PA288#v=onepage&q&f=false.
Variant: "Now he has departed a little ahead of me from this quaint world. This means nothing. For us faithful physicists, the separation between past, present, and future has only the meaning of an illusion, though a persistent one." Quoted in Einstein and Religion by Max Jammer (2002), p. 161 http://books.google.com/books?id=TnCc1f1C25IC&lpg=PP1&pg=PA161#v=onepage&q&f=false.
Variant: "Now he has preceded me by a little bit in his departure from this strange world as well. This means nothing. For those of us who believe in physics, the distinction between past, present, and future is only an illusion, however tenacious this illusion may be." Quoted in Einstein: A Biography by Jürgen Neff (2007), p. 402 http://books.google.com/books?id=B8K6n177ZwcC&lpg=PP1&pg=PA402#v=onepage&q&f=false

Georg Wilhelm Friedrich Hegel photo
Chuck Palahniuk photo

“The Eyes of the Future are looking back at us and they are praying for us to see beyond our own time.”

Terry Tempest Williams (1955) American writer

Source: Red: Passion and Patience in the Desert

Elizabeth Gilbert photo
Warren Buffett photo
Jack Kerouac photo
Sören Kierkegaard photo
Victor Hugo photo

“The future has several names. For the weak, it is impossible; for the fainthearted, it is unknown; but for the valiant, it is ideal.”

Variant: The future has many names: For the weak, it means the unattainable. For the fearful, it means the unknown. For the courageous, it means opportunity.
Source: Les Misérables

“For the future of the earth, We shall fight for it ~Nyan!~”

Mia Ikumi (1979) Japanese manga artist

Source: Tokyo Mew Mew, Vol. 1

Brandon Mull photo
Robin S. Sharma photo

“Never be a prisoner of your past. Become the architect of you future. You will never be the same.”

Robin S. Sharma (1965) Canadian self help writer

Variant: We are all here for some special reason. Stop being a prisoner of your past. Become the architect of your future.
Source: The Monk Who Sold His Ferrari: A Fable About Fulfilling Your Dreams Reaching Your Destiny

Nicholas Sparks photo
Naomi Shihab Nye photo

“It was terrible when a single conversation with someone determined your whole future relationship.”

Naomi Shihab Nye (1952) American writer

Source: There Is No Long Distance Now

Paulo Coelho photo
Alyson Nöel photo
Cassandra Clare photo

“Because I foresee many romantic picnics in our future. You, drinking a virgin pina colada. Me, drinking the blood of a virgin.”

Simon to Clary, pg. 217
Source: The Mortal Instruments, City of Ashes (2008)

Haruki Murakami photo
Derek Landy photo

“Well, for future reference, this is my serious face.”

Derek Landy (1974) Irish children's writer

Source: Dark Days

Kate Chopin photo
J. Michael Straczynski photo
Lois Lowry photo
Sherrilyn Kenyon photo
Simone de Beauvoir photo

“Change your life today. Don't gamble on the future, act now, without delay.”

Simone de Beauvoir (1908–1986) French writer, intellectual, existentialist philosopher, political activist, feminist, and social theorist

Attributed
Source: As quoted in The Book of Positive Quotations (2007) by John Cook, p. 548

Henry Wadsworth Longfellow photo
Rick Riordan photo

“The future for Commander Tool Belt was not looking so hot.”

Source: The Lost Hero

Jonathan Safran Foer photo
Darren Shan photo
Richard Bach photo

“Don't turn away from possible futures before you're certain you don't have anything to learn from them.”

Richard Bach (1936) American spiritual writer

Illusions : The Adventures of a Reluctant Messiah (1977)
Source: Illusions: The Adventures of a Reluctant Messiah
Context: You are led through your lifetime by the inner learning creature, the playful spiritual being that is your real self.
Don't turn away from possible futures before you're certain you don't have anything to learn from them.

Amin Maalouf photo
Jerry Spinelli photo
Sarah Dessen photo
Oprah Winfrey photo

“You aren't your past, you are probability of your future.”

Oprah Winfrey (1954) American businesswoman, talk show host, actress, producer, and philanthropist
Robin Hobb photo

“Don't stop doing what you love.
Don't let your future be ruined by a bunch of loony sand monkeys.”

Megan McCafferty (1973) American novelist

Source: Second Helpings

Robert Greene photo
Vikram Seth photo
Brad Meltzer photo
Anna Akhmatova photo

“As the future ripens in the past,
so the past rots in the future --
a terrible festival of dead leaves.”

Anna Akhmatova (1889–1966) Russian modernist poet

Source: Poems of Akhmatova

Warren Buffett photo

“Every saint has a past. Every sinner has a future.”

Warren Buffett (1930) American business magnate, investor, and philanthropist
Daniel Wallace photo
Jack Canfield photo

“Create your future from your future, not your past.”

Jack Canfield (1944) American writer

The Success Principles: How to Get from Where You Are to Where You Want to Be

Richard Bach photo

“One way to pick a future is to believe it’s inevitable.”

Richard Bach (1936) American spiritual writer

Source: One

Graham Greene photo
Jodi Picoult photo
Walt Whitman photo

“The future is no more uncertain than the present.”

Walt Whitman (1819–1892) American poet, essayist and journalist
Nick Hornby photo
Arthur C. Clarke photo

“One of the biggest roles of science fiction is to prepare people to accept the future without pain and to encourage a flexibility of mind. Politicians should read science fiction, not westerns and detective stories.”

Arthur C. Clarke (1917–2008) British science fiction writer, science writer, inventor, undersea explorer, and television series host

As quoted in The Making of Kubrick's 2001 (1970) by Jerome Agel, p. 300
1970s
Context: One of the biggest roles of science fiction is to prepare people to accept the future without pain and to encourage a flexibility of mind. Politicians should read science fiction, not westerns and detective stories. Two-thirds of 2001 is realistic — hardware and technology — to establish background for the metaphysical, philosophical, and religious meanings later.

Yogi Berra photo

“It's tough to make predictions, especially about the future”

Yogi Berra (1925–2015) American baseball player, manager, coach

The earliest citations of this proverb, from the mid-twentieth century, refer to it as Danish in origin. See http://quoteinvestigator.com/2013/10/20/no-predict/
Disputed, Misattributed

Sophie Kinsella photo
Ken Robinson photo
Orson Scott Card photo
Alan Moore photo
Plutarch photo
Ned Vizzini photo
Douglas Coupland photo
Paulo Coelho photo
Ambrose Bierce photo

“FUTURE, n.
That period of time in which our affairs prosper, our friends are true and our happiness is assured.”

Ambrose Bierce (1842–1914) American editorialist, journalist, short story writer, fabulist, and satirist

Source: The Unabridged Devil's Dictionary