Who Moved My Cheese Book Summary
The book opens by stating the four major characters, Scurry and Sniff, the two mice and Haw and Hem, the two little people. Sniffsniffs out change early, Scurryscurries into action, Hemdenies and resists change as he fears it will lead to something worse, Hawlearns to adapt in time when he sees changing can lead to something better! .
Into the plot, Spencer adds a maze, which represents the workplace or the place where people look for the things they desire. Cheese is used as a metaphor in Who Moved My Cheese for the things that people look for in life like food, health, wealth, among others. Having put this in place, the author starts the story.
The two mice and the two little people live in a maze where every morning, they run to Cheese Station C and get enough cheese for everyones needs. With time, self-satisfaction sets in, and Hem and Haw start taking their cheese for granted.
Fortunately, Sniff and Scurry are ever serious with their cheese, and they keep on investigating its source to see whether the supply is diminishing. One day, these characters run to the station only to find the cheese is gone. Scurry and Sniff, being little creatures void of intelligence and reasoning, are not surprised by the absence of the cheese.
What Who Moved My Cheese Talks About
Who Moved My Cheese is a book written by Spencer Johnson. It is a short story about how most of us deal with change and how we should do it instead. It contains a lot of wisdom and asks the crucial question: what would you do if you werent afraid? It taught me that life is constantly changing and that we should adapt to change instead of resisting it.
It took me a long time before reading this book because of its title.
Believe it or not, the word cheese made the whole story smell bad.
Thats too bad, as its a great book!
Enjoy the summary!
Who Moved My Cheese Contents
Who Moved My CheeseHas 12 mini-chapters which all fall within the second of the three parts of the book
Part 1: A Gathering Chicago
Part 2: Who Moved My Cheese?: The Story
Part 3: A Discussion Later That Same Day
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A 3 Minute Summary Of The 15 Core Lessons
#1 Change is a Constant Whether you appreciate it or not, the world is in constant flux and everything is always changing. Being able to roll with the punches and accept that things will always change will result in a happier outlook on life in a better strategy to reach your goals. Dont be locked into a single plan or pathway to success, as the odds are, youll have to change at least something about your ideas at one point or another.
#2 Move On to New Opportunities If change is a constant in this world, so is disappointment and failure. No matter how skilled you are, youll eventually run into a roadblock or stumble from a mistake. But the key between successful people and unsuccessful ones is that successful people will move on to new opportunities rather than giving up when they fail.
#3 Dont Take Yourself So Seriously This book is written largely in an allegory and is a tale about mice searching for cheese. If nothing else, learn not to focus on your fears as insurmountable obstacles and dont take your goals and dreams so seriously that you cant learn to laugh at your responses. Being easygoing is a great gift you can give yourself.
#7 Keep It Simple Dont over-complicate your plans or procedures. Over analyzation and over-complication are not only a waste of time but confusing to your workers. As a business leader, you should form a simple message and outline for your plans and follow through. Simple plans are easier to adapt to during times of change, as well.
Who Moved My Cheese Key Idea #: Good Situations Never Last Forever So Be Prepared
So Hem and Haw woke up one morning and were shocked to realize that their cheese was gone.
Indeed, change always happens, sooner or later. Being aware of this can help you keep a closer eye on your current situation, to better anticipate the change ahead.
Sniff and Scurry, in contrast, never took the stash for granted, and made sure to keep an eye out for any changes to the supply. Consequently, the two mice noticed that the amount of cheese was slowly but steadily declining.
If you expect things to remain the same, you may miss the signs that things are indeed changing. Hem and Haw were so thrilled with the cheese that they didnt notice the stash dwindling nor even when the cheese started to mold!
Sometimes the things we believe about ourselves make it harder to accept change. If you feel you deserve success, good health or an endless supply of cheese, anything that takes these things away from you will feel unfair so much so that you might even deny the fact that change is happening at all.
Hem and Haw felt deep down that Cheese Station C was a reward for their hard work. After all, they had spent tons of time looking for it! So when the stash finally disappeared, they just couldnt accept reality.
You never want to find yourself in this position. Instead, keep your eyes peeled for signs of change in your life and adapt as soon as you can. The sooner you do, the sooner youll find your way again.
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Lesson : Dont Worry Theres Always New Cheese To Be Found The Minute You Start Moving Things Will Improve
The best part about cheese isnt that once youve found it youre set for life. Its that theres always more cheese to be found. Haw eventually got sick of sitting around, so he decided to go looking for new cheese all by himself.
Once he started moving, his situation instantly got better. Yes, he just found a few bits and pieces of cheese here and there at first, but this was a lot better than doing nothing and being paralyzed by fear. After having found the courage to move on despite your fears once, fears grip on you will never be as strong as it used to be.
Haw realized the accumulated fears in his mind were a lot worse than even the biggest challenges he encountered. Full of confidence, he kept exploring the maze, until he eventually found Sniff and Scurry at Station N, where the three of them shared the new cheese they had found.
Who Moved My Cheese Key Idea #: Use The Lessons Youve Learned From This Cheesy Parable To Reach Your Own Goals
So how can you apply the lessons of this parable to the benefit of your business or even your life?
Consider telling your team the story of Hem, Haw, Sniff and Scurry. They may begin to think more favorably about change and the potential benefits it can bring to an organization.
You can also learn valuable information by asking your employees with which character they identify. For example, people who feel an affinity for the mice Sniff and Scurry could become the agents of change that your organization needs.
People who are Sniffs are great observers. They notice the smallest of changes, which enables them to predict subsequent larger changes in a marketplace. Sniffs can also discover new products and competitive angles, or update a companys corporate vision.
People who are Scurrys, on the other hand, like to get things done. These employees should be encouraged to take action based on a new corporate vision.
The Hems of your organization, however, often feel unsafe during times of change. This may pose a problem, especially if they arent able to find the courage to turn into Haws. Youll have to work hard to demonstrate the ways that change can work to their advantage.
The experience of the little people and mice can teach your team to be on the lookout for new opportunities. Just consider how our parable ends. Even though there was plenty of cheese at Cheese Station N, Haw having learned his lesson kept exploring the maze, looking for other stashes.
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How To Anticipate And Adapt To Change Quickly
And the next time that times are a-changing? Reflect on your previous mistakes and dont let those changes surprise you!
Recall that no matter how secure something feels, you should always expect change to happen.
Because when you expect change to happen, youll better monitor and anticipate it early.
And when you monitor and anticipate change early, youll find it easier to adapt to it quickly.
And when you adapt to change quickly you may find you even enjoy it.
And when you enjoy change youll learn to love testing the edge of your comfort zone youll be ready to embrace change again and again when it happens.
Youll be less stressed, less unhappy and more adaptive than those who resist the inevitable.
Youll shift your focus from losing what once was, to gaining what might someday be.
Youll have more time, space and energy to embrace new outcomes that may prove even better than the old ones.
And youll enjoy a time-tested path to more success in your life and your work.
Who Moved My Cheese Summary The Premise
So the premise of this story is that every morning, Sniff, Scurry, Hem and Haw got up early, put on their favorite running shoes and ran around the maze looking for their favorite cheese.
Sniff and Scurry used a trial-and-error approach to find the cheese. One would sniff while the other scurried about.
Hem and Haw used their smart brains to find the cheese. Eventually both the mice and the little people found a generous amount of cheese located at Cheese Station C.
All was going very well. They all went to Cheese Station C every morning, ate a lot of cheese and returned home every night.
This went on for a while. As time passed, Sniff and Scurry continued to wake up bright and early and scurry on to the cheese station, sniffed around to see if things had changed as they enjoyed their cheese throughout the day.
Hem and Haw on the other hand, started to get lazy, waking up later each morning and would walk over to the cheese station, expecting there to be cheese waiting for them.
They had so much cheese at Cheese station C that they felt confident that it would continue to be there each morning like clockwork.
Theyd become so smug in their success of finding the cheese and a bit too complacent.
One morning, all the cheese was gone. When the mice arrived that day, they were not surprised, because they had already seen that the cheese was getting less and less as they did their morning inspections.
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Who Moved My Cheese Book Review
Our school principal once said, All good things are sweet and short. Who moved my Cheese? is an epitome of that expression. This book is not your usual self-help book because, fascinatingly enough, you can read it in just a couple of hours! In my own case, I read it while at the airport, waiting for the boarding call after the security check. Secondly, although it carries a profound message to take home, the book is understandable even by a ten-year-old kid! This is because the book presents itself in the form of a simple fable. There are just four characters in this fable for each of whom, cheese is their ultimate aim in life. While two of them are simple, the other two are complex overthinkers. How one same situation affects each of them in different ways is the essence of the story.
The Narrative: Who Moved My Cheese
Before we cover the most important Who Moved My Cheese lessons, we need to know the story at its heart.
The story takes place in a maze, where four characters search for and consume cheese. Cheese represents happiness or satisfaction in its various forms for instance, security, prestige, or wealth.
Two characters, Sniff and Scurry, are mice who take an industrious, uncomplicated trial-and-error approach to finding cheese. They dont overthink things, instead trying out various routes until one day they find a large store of cheese. Well see that this is one of the most important Who Moved My Cheese lessons.
The other two characters, Hem and Haw, are little humans who apply more sophisticated thinking and analytical skills to the daily search. They, too, find the same large stockpile of cheese as the mice.
But the two have very different attitudes toward their situation. The humans Hem and Haw take the cheese for granted, assuming it will always be there. By contrast, the mice stay alert to their surroundings. They notice that the quality and supply of the cheese are slowly dwindling.
One day the cheese is gone. How the characters cope with this change offers lessons in surviving and thriving despite the inevitable changes in life and the workplace.
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What Is The Main Message Of Who Moved My Cheese
Who moved my cheese is a fable about four characters who live in a maze and they all love cheese. … Cheese a metaphor for what you want to have in life . It could be a good job, loving relationship, money or health. The very core message of the book is this: things constantly change so we must adapt.
Introduction: Who Moved My Cheese
Who moved my cheese is a fable about four characters who live in a maze and they all love cheese. When the cheese disappears, Scurry and Sniff enthusiastically head out into the maze to find new cheese. On the other hand Hem and Hall feel betrayed and complain. They waste their time and energy hoping the old cheese will return. Hall realizes the old cheese wont return so he sets out into the maze in search for new cheese. He writes what he learns on the walls hoping that Him will follow him. Eventually he discovers new cheese and sees that Scurry and Sniff were already there. Cheese a metaphor for what you want to have in life. It could be a good job, loving relationship, money or health. The very core message of the book is this: things constantly change so we must adapt. The quicker we adapt a change the more satisfied will be with.
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Main Lessons In The Book
Finally, Haw writes all his notes on the wall, concluding the books main lessons.
Change Happens
They Keep Moving The Cheese
Anticipate Change
Get Ready For The Cheese To Move
Monitor Change
Smell The Cheese Often So You Know When It Is Getting Old
Adapt To Change Quickly
The Quicker You Let Go Of Old Cheese, The Sooner You Can Enjoy New Cheese
Change
Savor The Adventure And Enjoy The Taste Of New Cheese!
Be Ready To Change Quickly And Enjoy It Again
They Keep Moving The Cheese.
Summary Of Who Moved My Cheese Written By Spencer Johnson
Once upon a time, there was a maze that contained cheese.
Two mice were running around to find it. Every day, theyd wake up, and spend the day looking for a cheese station.
Two Littlepeople did the same.
One day, all of them found a lot of cheese at station C. They were happy.
The mice woke up early, and came to eat the cheese every day.
The Littlepeople were happy too, but as time went by, they became comfortable. They got used to the cheese. Then they became arrogant and entitled.
They didnt notice that the portion of cheese was diminishing every day.
One day the cheese had completely disappeared. So the mice went back into the maze to look for new cheese.
The Littlepeople though, were shocked. This is not fair, they said, who took my cheese away?
They spent the day complaining, and returned the next day thinking that maybe, the cheese would come backbut it never did.
Meanwhile, the mice had looked enough so that they had found a new cheese station: station N.
During that time, the Littlepeople were still complaining the cheese had disappeared.
One of them declared at some point thats enough, the mice have probably found new cheese by now. Lets go back into the maze. But the other, afraid of the efforts and the risk of failure, objected.
your
As time went by, they became more irritated. So they decided to drill a hole into the wall to see if the cheese was there. They worked hard, but to no avail.
There was no cheese.
So he did.
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How Much Would I Rate The Book Who Moved My Cheese
Rating books is not an easy thing to do. This is because, I personally believe that each book is a marvel in itself, and no book can be bad, for all of them teach you something. But if it helps novice readers who wonder if the book is worth their time, then theres no harm in rating books. So, if I were to rate Who moved my Cheese? on a scale of ten, I would easily say it deserves a 9/10.
How These Lessons Are Useful To Me During The Lockdown Period
Who moved my cheese by Spencer Johnson is a short book but is packed with a lot of important lessons that we can pick up during this pandemic time. It was a parable about change it is about a journey of four characters searching, finding, losing, and rediscovering back their cheese in a large twisting maze.
Johnson uses cheese as a metaphor for what you want in life, such as a well-paid job, a loving relationship, possessions, or a healthier body. The maze is the environment we live in, such as our workplace, our friends, family. The book talks about problems that no cheese is everlasting and life changes, whether we love it or not.
As Heraclitus once said Change is the only constant in life
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