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A Book Review Article
Who Moved My Cheese?
G.P. Putnam's
Sons– 1998 (94 pages in hardback)
Author Spencer Johnson, MD
ISBN 0-399-14446-3
In the turbulent
corporate world it is important to anticipate, recognize, and understand
change. Who Moved My Cheese? is a book which
describes how to deal with change.
Who Moved my Cheese? is a story about how two mice and two little men look for
cheese in a maze. The cheese pictures what we want to have in life, whether it
is a small income or a life of luxury.
The maze pictures where we spend our time looking for what we want. Some people are content with what they have
and resist change, while others are constantly looking for new opportunities.
The
mice are named Sniff and Scurry. Sniff
sniffs out changes early and Scurry scurries into action. The two little men in the parable are Hem and
Haw. Hem denies and resists change
because he fears that something worse will happen. Haw learns to adapt in time when he sees that
change can lead to something better.
Throughout the book these four characters search and jog through the
maze, occasionally getting lost.
On
their journey the four characters barely survive until they finally see the
“light at the end of the tunnel” and proceed to eat lots of cheese and are very
happy. Then things begin to change. Sniff and Scurry soon notice changes in their
environment. Hem and Haw, however, think
they are “out of the woods” and take the cheese for granted. These two develop a comfort level in their
newly found stash of cheese. Gradually
the cheese begins to dwindle. Sniff and
Scurry are not concerned. They see that
the cheese is not going to last forever so they put on their running shoes and
search for new cheese.
Meanwhile, Hem
and Haw do not notice the dwindling supply of cheese. They are not alert to what the future holds
for them. When all the remaining cheese is
finally consumed, Hem and Haw throw two huge fits like little babies. This does not bring the cheese back, yet they
remain unwilling to search for new cheese.
Change
occurs and Hem and Haw are left behind.
Hem is bitter and reluctant to leave the cheese station in order to find
new cheese. He is very stubborn. He is too set in his ways to make the
necessary changes. He thinks he deserved
the cheese, and wants the cheese to be returned. He is not interested in searching for new
cheese. His old cheese is the only
cheese he wants and he refuses to leave the empty cheese station. Many people stick with old ways of doing
things because it is too frightening or difficult to change with the times.
Haw
begins to be concerned that they are spinning their wheels. For a while he
hopes that the old cheese will return.
He is afraid of venturing back out into the maze, so he waits with
Hem. Finally, after being very hungry
from the lack of cheese, Haw, out of desperation, decides to go search for new
cheese. This takes a great deal of
strength for Haw to face his fears and to leave Hem behind. On his journey Haw leaves several notes on
the walls of the maze as he learns new truths.
A few of the writings are:
- The more important your cheese is to you, the more
you want to hold on to it.
- Smell the cheese often so you know when it is getting
old.
- Movement in a new direction helps you find new
cheese.
- The quicker you let go of old cheese, the sooner you
find new cheese.
Haw eventually
finds his way to the new cheese. There he discovers Sniff and Scurry, who have
already found the fresh cheese and have been enjoying it for some time. Haw is sorry that he had not set out in
search of the new cheese sooner.
However, he misses his friend Hem, who took himself too seriously.
This entertaining
little parable is a quick read which illustrates that sometimes we get too
accustomed to our cheese being in a particular place and fail to notice when
the supply gets smaller or is about to disappear. Then when we finally notice, we are often too
frustrated to look for alternative sources of cheese, or else we eventually
start looking while losing valuable time.
Some people, of
course, are more astute and prepare themselves for the inevitable after
observing a dwindling cheese supply.
This book illustrates how some people foresee that they are going to
need to make major changes in their lives.
Therefore, they start searching for new alternatives before the change
actually has to be made. When the change
finally must be made, they are already prepared to take the appropriate
actions.
This story is
simplistic, but there are good philosophical points made throughout the
book. It points out these basic
concepts:
§
“They keep moving the cheese.” (Change happens.)
§
“Get ready for the cheese to move.” (Anticipate the
change.)
§
“Move with the cheese.” (Actually make the change.)
§
“Enjoy the taste of new cheese.” (Enjoy the fruits of
change.)
Many reviews give
Who Moved My Cheese? great
marks and compliment its easy reading and brevity. The book is very simple and makes a great
point. As you read this book you will probably start relating the different
characters in the book to people that you know, and how they react to change. Who Moved My Cheese? is
not just for business professionals or organizations, but can be very helpful
for everyday life.
Summaries From Other Reviews
An unknown writer
for Epinions.com wrote:
“ One of the reactions which I had, and I think that
many people have, is to reflect on areas of my life where my own cheese has
been moved and I have just been in denial and paralysis about it. When I saw
those areas I wanted to change, and the book alludes to how change can come.
You can jump-start your life.”
www.epinions.com/content_42066087556
Bruce
Bracken, a professor at a university, had this to say about the book:
"I am a faculty member at a university that has
always had large amounts of grant money available. In recent years, however,
the federal government has moved money into other areas. I did not want to
change; I enjoyed a favorable reputation in my area of interest. I began to
think it was unfair that I had to adjust after 20 years of hard work and that
having to change my research focus to compete with young people in new areas
was not right. Then I read Who Moved My
Cheese? and it shook me down to my toes.
"I'm
now in the Maze and have found bits of New Cheese, although I haven't found a
big Cheese Station yet. No worries; it is coming. I can envision it, and I am
actually enjoying the hunt much more than I thought I would. My family has also
noticed a big change in my attitude. All I can say is thank you for writing
this book. The story is simple but amazing -- and it changed my life."
www.educationworld.com/a_issues/issues296.shtml
Since the book is so
short, you might consider borrowing it from a friend or the library, rather
than purchasing it.
Phillip Parker is currently a supervisor for Hibernia
National Bank in Longview,
Phillip
can be contacted at: Phllpark@aol.com
weLEAD rating - recommended
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