You are what you eat – that’s obvious. But you are also what you consume mentally. With every conversation, book, podcast, tweet and interaction you are effectively incorporating somebody else’s thoughts, feelings and emotions into you.

You are being changed, ever so slightly.

Unless you completely switch off from all forms of communication, you can’t stop this process. Even if you try to actively not be changed, the content will in fact change you. Thus, the multi billion dollar advertising industry.

Despite our best intentions not to be influenced, advertisements work. We are affected by them, and as such, we change our (purchasing) behaviour.

This is not all bad, in fact it’s the basis of learning. By watching, observing, communicating and interacting we learn. The best learners purposefully open themselves up for being changed, because with change comes new insight. But to say that this learning doesn’t change you is wrong.