Book Review - "Who Moved My Cheese?" by Dr. Spencer Johnson

Who Moved My Cheese? It is my latest read. It’s a 93-page read, the story providing a real-life perspective. The story starts at a reunion party, and to extend the friend's meeting, a dinner is planned where the whole story takes place.

The author, Dr. Spencer Johnson, has revolved the story between 4 characters – two mice and two humans, and how differently both make decisions in the same circumstances. Now, most of you might be thinking that if humans are involved, they will make the right decisions in every situation. But here is the catch that the author wants everyone to focus on.

The book portrays the change each character witnesses and the way each one adapts to the situation. The four characters are Sniff (mice), Scurry (mice), Hem (human), and Haw (human). The former three adapt to change but at different durations.

This different duration is the thought process that each one goes through to adapt to the change; some adapt to change instantly while others think, value, look for good and bad, and then adapt to change.

This story is about two mice and two humans who live in a maze until there is a change one day—someone takes their cheese away. The situation here is the movement of cheese, and the responses range from making immediate adjustments to waiting for the circumstances to alter on their own so they can meet their needs.

This tale is about changing perspectives on change in general and work-related change in particular. Hem and Haw rely on their intelligence because they are human. They enjoy complexity and in-depth analysis.

On the other hand, Sniff and Scurry are mice that mostly rely on intuition. They react quickly and have an excellent sense of smell. Sniff always finds the path, whereas Scurry goes first if there's fresh cheese. Hem and Haw come across as unsure, and later on in the narrative, this proves to be a costly trait for them.

The mice opted for the immediate change and started searching for the new cheese factory, but the humans were afraid of the change and unwilling to adapt. But humans were waiting for things to change by themselves, which was unlikely. Individuals become skeptical when any change occurs as it pushes them from their comfort zone to adapt to a new change.

Whether someone is ready or not, change happens, but the author says that change can be good. Anticipating change, as done by the mice in the story, letting go of the past, and acting as you would if you were not afraid are his guiding ideas.

The best thing about the story was Hem, with his experience, filled the wall of the maze with beautiful quotes to motivate Haw to search for the new cheese station.

What one can learn from the story is that change is inevitable – this reminds me of the quote, “The only constant in life is change.” Change will take place whether people like it or not, and if people do not adapt to the change, they will become extinct.

Everyone fears change, but it is essential to ask yourself, “What would I do if I was not afraid?” this question provides motivation and a strategy to move forward with a solution to adapt to change. Change will happen; it is essential to anticipate the change, monitor the change, and make strategies to adapt to the change quickly and enjoy the change.

Conclusion

It can be concluded that everyone has their own journey. We cannot force people to act the way we want. As in the story, he was given enough space to adapt things on his own. He was not forced to act like the other three. However, he was advised by his friend Haw to adapt to change; he guided his friend by writing on the wall of the maze.

For top-notch content writing services designed to maximize conversion, check out Be My Wordsmith.