I'm not saying that the characters you see in shows and movies completely change you overnight after you start watching them. Rather, their influence gradually becomes a part of you over a period of time. They can amplify certain behaviours, introduce you to new ways of thinking, inspire you, and sometimes even encourage you to become a better person.

When you try to explain this idea to someone around you — or perhaps even to yourself while reading this — they might think that you're borderline becoming insane. But maybe that simply means they haven't yet understood or noticed this phenomenon.

Be it learning to show empathy, like Barry Allen from The Flash, trying to put yourself in another person's shoes and see things from their point of view, standing alone and saying, “I can do this all day,” learning from our mistakes so that we don't repeat them, understanding the art of redemption, realizing that no amount of money can ever buy a second of time, redefining ourselves, or learning to pick ourselves up every time we fall — all of these ideas can contribute to our mentality in ways much larger than we initially expect.

And it isn't only about fictional characters. We learn countless things from the people around us and from the stories we experience. Some of them may be professional, some personal, and some as simple as basic knowledge. Yet, all of them contribute to our attitudes, behaviours, and the way we see the world, often more than we realize.