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Who Moved My Cheese? #1
Who Moved My Cheese?
"Who Moved My Cheese?" is a simple parable that reveals profound truths. It is an amusing and enlightening story of four characters who live in a "Maze" and look for "Cheese" to nourish them and make them happy.
Two are mice named Sniff and Scurry. And two are "Littlepeople" — beings the size of mice who look and act a lot like people. Their names are Hem and Haw.
"Cheese" is a metaphor for what you want to have in life — whether it's a good job, a loving relationship, money, a possession, health, or spiritual peace of mind.
And the "Maze" is where you look for what you want — the organisation you work in or the family or community you live in.
In the story, the characters are faced with unexpected change. Eventually, one of them deals with it successfully, and writes what he has learned from his experience on the Maze walls.
When you come to see "The Handwriting on the Wall," you can discover for yourself how to deal with change, so that you can enjoy less stress and more success (however you define it) in your work and in your life.
Written for all ages, the story takes less than an hour to read, but its unique insights can last for a lifetime.
Two are mice named Sniff and Scurry. And two are "Littlepeople" — beings the size of mice who look and act a lot like people. Their names are Hem and Haw.
"Cheese" is a metaphor for what you want to have in life — whether it's a good job, a loving relationship, money, a possession, health, or spiritual peace of mind.
And the "Maze" is where you look for what you want — the organisation you work in or the family or community you live in.
In the story, the characters are faced with unexpected change. Eventually, one of them deals with it successfully, and writes what he has learned from his experience on the Maze walls.
When you come to see "The Handwriting on the Wall," you can discover for yourself how to deal with change, so that you can enjoy less stress and more success (however you define it) in your work and in your life.
Written for all ages, the story takes less than an hour to read, but its unique insights can last for a lifetime.
98 pages, Hardcover
First published January 1, 1999
About the author
Spencer Johnson
178 books2,061 followersLibrarian’s note: There is more than one author in the Goodreads database with this name.
Spencer Johnson, M.D. left behind a medical career to write short books about life. The most famous was “Who Moved My Cheese?" published in 1998. The book became a publishing phenomenon and a workplace manual. Over 50 million copies of Spencer Johnson’s books are in use worldwide in 47 languages.
Dr. Johnson's education included a psychology degree from the University of Southern California, a M.D. from the Royal College of Surgeons and medical clerkships at Harvard Medical School and the Mayo Clinic.
Spencer Johnson, M.D. left behind a medical career to write short books about life. The most famous was “Who Moved My Cheese?" published in 1998. The book became a publishing phenomenon and a workplace manual. Over 50 million copies of Spencer Johnson’s books are in use worldwide in 47 languages.
Dr. Johnson's education included a psychology degree from the University of Southern California, a M.D. from the Royal College of Surgeons and medical clerkships at Harvard Medical School and the Mayo Clinic.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 17,048 reviews
December 24, 2015
SPOILER ALERT! I am going to save anyone who thinks they need to read this book time & money by summarizing the entire book in the next two sentences: Things change. Learn to adapt.
You're welcome. If you still feel the need to spend money please contact me & I will tell you where to send it.
You're welcome. If you still feel the need to spend money please contact me & I will tell you where to send it.
September 26, 2007
You can read this book in about 45 minutes, but it will feel like a week. I think that I would have enjoyed the Spanish version better. I don't speak Spanish.
I don't know whether the authors of this book have an employer, but if they do, I would recommend a "random" drug test.
This book is about a team of two mice and a team of two minature exectives who each slide into a pair of size 0.005 sneakers and run through a maze in search of cheese. All goes well--until somebody moved the cheese! Chaos then (predictably if not hilariously) ensues. And that is the intelligent part of the book...
For the remainder of the book, we get to listen in on a group of friends discuss how the philosophy behind this epic tale of missing cheese relates to their lives. The members of this discussion group are the type of people for whom warning labels are placed on hot coffee cups. If this half-assed tale of relocated dairy food has any relevance to your life, then there is any number of medications that you should consider asking your doctor about.
I don't know whether the authors of this book have an employer, but if they do, I would recommend a "random" drug test.
This book is about a team of two mice and a team of two minature exectives who each slide into a pair of size 0.005 sneakers and run through a maze in search of cheese. All goes well--until somebody moved the cheese! Chaos then (predictably if not hilariously) ensues. And that is the intelligent part of the book...
For the remainder of the book, we get to listen in on a group of friends discuss how the philosophy behind this epic tale of missing cheese relates to their lives. The members of this discussion group are the type of people for whom warning labels are placed on hot coffee cups. If this half-assed tale of relocated dairy food has any relevance to your life, then there is any number of medications that you should consider asking your doctor about.
December 4, 2013
This is a book about victimized lower and middle class mice trapped in a corporate capitalist maze, forced by The Man to scurry around, looking for "The Cheese" (salary, 401K, maybe even decent PPO or HMO). Then The Man (maybe Boeing, maybe American Airlines, maybe Monsanto--whoever) MOVES THE CHEESE because it interferes with his quarterly earnings reports or THE CHEESE will be more cost effective if it is shipped to China or Rwanda where labor is cheaper. So what are the mice supposed to do? Are they supposed to unionize, or protest the WTO, or elect people who will enforce antitrust laws in this country! oh, Nooooo! They are supposed to change directions and start running around looking for THE CHEESE in some other part of the maze. Inferior quality CHEESE, no doubt--maybe more of a PROCESSED CHEESE FOOD, without the employer-matched 401K, sans health insurance. Scurry, scurry, little mice! Find your CHEESE before Wall Street and NASDAQ move it again! They are pretty quick to move THE CHEESE and they don't care if you starve!
That is why this book is horrid.
But I'm not bitter.
That is why this book is horrid.
But I'm not bitter.
October 27, 2022
Make it pizza.
Two mice, Sniff and Scurry, and two little people, Haw and Hem, are enjoying a perfect blissful life, until one day someone moves their Cheese. Oh no! What will become of them now???
A nice allegorical story about embracing change.
I think this could’ve been a lovelier 4 star message if it would’ve been just a tad less allegorical and repetitive; and the ending far less corporate.
The movie clip is perfect adaptation. Right to the point, 15 min, without all the excessive repetition and almost none of the corporate stuff.
-----------------------------------------------
PERSONAL NOTE :
[1999] [96p] [Self-help] [Conditional Recommendable] [I think I'm a Haw.] [Be practical. Always keep two or three backup Cheese for a rainy day.]
-----------------------------------------------
Que sea pizza.
Dos ratones, Sniff y Scurry, y dos pequeñas personas, Haw y Hem, disfrutan una perfecta feliz vida, hasta que un día alguien les mueve el Queso. ¡Oh no! ¿¿¿Qué será de ellos ahora???
Una linda historia alegórica sobre abrazar el cambio.
Creo que hubiera sido un mensaje de 4 estrellas mucho más lindo si tan sólo hubiera sido un tanto menos alegórica y repetitiva; y el final mucho menos corporativo.
El cortometraje es una perfecta adaptación. Directa al punto, 15 min, sin la excesiva repetición y casi nada del mambo corporativo.
-----------------------------------------------
NOTA PERSONAL :
[1999] [96p] [Autoayuda] [Recomendable Condicional] [Creo que soy un Haw.] [Sé práctico. Siempre guardá dos o tres Quesos de reemplazo para un día lluvioso.]
-----------------------------------------------
Two mice, Sniff and Scurry, and two little people, Haw and Hem, are enjoying a perfect blissful life, until one day someone moves their Cheese. Oh no! What will become of them now???
A nice allegorical story about embracing change.
I think this could’ve been a lovelier 4 star message if it would’ve been just a tad less allegorical and repetitive; and the ending far less corporate.
The movie clip is perfect adaptation. Right to the point, 15 min, without all the excessive repetition and almost none of the corporate stuff.
-----------------------------------------------
PERSONAL NOTE :
[1999] [96p] [Self-help] [Conditional Recommendable] [I think I'm a Haw.] [Be practical. Always keep two or three backup Cheese for a rainy day.]
-----------------------------------------------
Que sea pizza.
Dos ratones, Sniff y Scurry, y dos pequeñas personas, Haw y Hem, disfrutan una perfecta feliz vida, hasta que un día alguien les mueve el Queso. ¡Oh no! ¿¿¿Qué será de ellos ahora???
Una linda historia alegórica sobre abrazar el cambio.
Creo que hubiera sido un mensaje de 4 estrellas mucho más lindo si tan sólo hubiera sido un tanto menos alegórica y repetitiva; y el final mucho menos corporativo.
El cortometraje es una perfecta adaptación. Directa al punto, 15 min, sin la excesiva repetición y casi nada del mambo corporativo.
-----------------------------------------------
NOTA PERSONAL :
[1999] [96p] [Autoayuda] [Recomendable Condicional] [Creo que soy un Haw.] [Sé práctico. Siempre guardá dos o tres Quesos de reemplazo para un día lluvioso.]
-----------------------------------------------
September 19, 2021
Who Moved My Cheese?, Spencer Johnson
Allegorically, Who Moved My Cheese? features four characters: two mice, "Sniff" and "Scurry," and two Littlepeople, human metaphor, "Hem" and "Haw." (The names of the Littlepeople are taken from the phrase "hem and haw," a term for indecisiveness.)
They live in a maze, a representation of one's environment, and look for cheese, representative of happiness and success.
Initially without cheese, each group, the mice and humans, paired off and traveled the lengthy corridors searching for cheese. One day both groups happen upon a cheese-filled corridor at "Cheese Station C." Content with their find, the humans establish routines around their daily intake of cheese, slowly becoming arrogant in the process.
One day Sniff and Scurry arrive at "Cheese Station C" to find no cheese left, but they are not surprised.
Noticing the cheese supply dwindling, they have mentally prepared beforehand for the arduous but inevitable task of finding more cheese. Leaving "Cheese Station C" behind, they begin their hunt for new cheese together.
Later that day, Hem and Haw arrive at Cheese Station C only to find the same thing, no cheese. Angered and annoyed, Hem demands, "Who moved my cheese?" The humans have counted on the cheese supply to be constant, and so are unprepared for this eventuality. After deciding that the cheese is indeed gone they get angry at the unfairness of the situation. Haw suggests a search for new cheese, but Hem is dead-set in his disappointment and dismisses the proposal. ...
تاریخ نخستین خوانش: روز پانزدهم ماه فوریه سال 2010میلادی
عنوان: چه کسی پنیر مرا جابجا کرد؛ نویسنده: اسپنسر جانسون؛ مترجم: شمسی بهبهانی؛ تهران، نشر اختران؛
بسیاری این کتاب را با عنوانهای گوناگون ترجمه کرده اند
موشها «اسنیف» و «اسکوری»؛ و آدم کوچولوها «هم» و «ها»؛ این چهار شخصیت، برای نشان دادن سادگی و پیچیدگی درون آدمها، بدون در نظر گرفتن «سن»، «جنس»، «نژاد»یا «ملیت» هستند؛ همگی گاهی همچو «اسنیف» عمل میکنیم، کسانی که تغییرات را زود بو میکشند؛ یا همچون «اسکوری» به سرعت وارد عمل میشویم؛ گاه همانند «هم» میشویم، که با انکار تغییرات رودرروی آنها میایستیم، چرا که میترسیم به سمت چیزی بدتر کشیده شویم؛ یا همچون «ها»، که یاد میگیرد وقتی شرایط او را به سمت چیزی بهتر راهنمایی میکند، خود را با آن هماهنگ کند
تاریخ بهنگام رسانی 29/07/1399هجری خورشیدی؛ 27/06/1400هجری خورشیدی؛ ا. شربیانی
Allegorically, Who Moved My Cheese? features four characters: two mice, "Sniff" and "Scurry," and two Littlepeople, human metaphor, "Hem" and "Haw." (The names of the Littlepeople are taken from the phrase "hem and haw," a term for indecisiveness.)
They live in a maze, a representation of one's environment, and look for cheese, representative of happiness and success.
Initially without cheese, each group, the mice and humans, paired off and traveled the lengthy corridors searching for cheese. One day both groups happen upon a cheese-filled corridor at "Cheese Station C." Content with their find, the humans establish routines around their daily intake of cheese, slowly becoming arrogant in the process.
One day Sniff and Scurry arrive at "Cheese Station C" to find no cheese left, but they are not surprised.
Noticing the cheese supply dwindling, they have mentally prepared beforehand for the arduous but inevitable task of finding more cheese. Leaving "Cheese Station C" behind, they begin their hunt for new cheese together.
Later that day, Hem and Haw arrive at Cheese Station C only to find the same thing, no cheese. Angered and annoyed, Hem demands, "Who moved my cheese?" The humans have counted on the cheese supply to be constant, and so are unprepared for this eventuality. After deciding that the cheese is indeed gone they get angry at the unfairness of the situation. Haw suggests a search for new cheese, but Hem is dead-set in his disappointment and dismisses the proposal. ...
تاریخ نخستین خوانش: روز پانزدهم ماه فوریه سال 2010میلادی
عنوان: چه کسی پنیر مرا جابجا کرد؛ نویسنده: اسپنسر جانسون؛ مترجم: شمسی بهبهانی؛ تهران، نشر اختران؛
بسیاری این کتاب را با عنوانهای گوناگون ترجمه کرده اند
موشها «اسنیف» و «اسکوری»؛ و آدم کوچولوها «هم» و «ها»؛ این چهار شخصیت، برای نشان دادن سادگی و پیچیدگی درون آدمها، بدون در نظر گرفتن «سن»، «جنس»، «نژاد»یا «ملیت» هستند؛ همگی گاهی همچو «اسنیف» عمل میکنیم، کسانی که تغییرات را زود بو میکشند؛ یا همچون «اسکوری» به سرعت وارد عمل میشویم؛ گاه همانند «هم» میشویم، که با انکار تغییرات رودرروی آنها میایستیم، چرا که میترسیم به سمت چیزی بدتر کشیده شویم؛ یا همچون «ها»، که یاد میگیرد وقتی شرایط او را به سمت چیزی بهتر راهنمایی میکند، خود را با آن هماهنگ کند
تاریخ بهنگام رسانی 29/07/1399هجری خورشیدی؛ 27/06/1400هجری خورشیدی؛ ا. شربیانی
September 23, 2008
It requires a unique sort of demonic skill to take the utterly obvious, lather it with sentimentality, turn it into an animal story, give it a big font and wide margins so that what really ought to be a pamphlet handed out for free on subways becomes instead a "book," and then expect businesspeople to buy it.
Which they did. God help us all.
Which they did. God help us all.
March 15, 2008
For years I have managed to avoid reading the popular book Who Moved My Cheese? However, it was recently recommended to me because I mentioned that I'm not especially enthusiastic about change.
I wish I could un-read this book. I thought it was overly simplistic and rather insulting to any intelligent person. This book contains such clever little proverbs as "He was happy when he wasn't being run by his fears" (in other words, just stop being afraid, and you'll be happy). Ok, good, I'll try that if my car breaks down on a dark deserted highway, or next time my father complains of chest pains. Sometimes you're not supposed to be happy. Sometimes you're supposed to stay alert and guarded, and be ready for action.
The question I wish the author had addressed (instead of coming up with platitudes in praise of change) is this: What is the balance between working to improve what you have (repairing) vs. looking for something new (replacing)?
Adaptation and flexibility are all well and good, but sometimes life is a little too complicated to be resolved just by embracing change. After all, as authors Kathleen and William Lundin said in one of their books "Adapting to a wild leader is like being the fox in a blood-sport hunt. You may be quick, clever, and nimble, but you'll still be killed at the end of the game."
I wish I could un-read this book. I thought it was overly simplistic and rather insulting to any intelligent person. This book contains such clever little proverbs as "He was happy when he wasn't being run by his fears" (in other words, just stop being afraid, and you'll be happy). Ok, good, I'll try that if my car breaks down on a dark deserted highway, or next time my father complains of chest pains. Sometimes you're not supposed to be happy. Sometimes you're supposed to stay alert and guarded, and be ready for action.
The question I wish the author had addressed (instead of coming up with platitudes in praise of change) is this: What is the balance between working to improve what you have (repairing) vs. looking for something new (replacing)?
Adaptation and flexibility are all well and good, but sometimes life is a little too complicated to be resolved just by embracing change. After all, as authors Kathleen and William Lundin said in one of their books "Adapting to a wild leader is like being the fox in a blood-sport hunt. You may be quick, clever, and nimble, but you'll still be killed at the end of the game."
January 31, 2008
Silly little self promoting book. First third is a bunch of people sitting around talking about this new silver-bullet omniscient business book that changed their lives.
Middle third is this fairy tale that I can sum up in five (5) words: SHIT HAPPENS, GET OVER IT.
And finally the most insulting part is the last third where that group of high-potential future cult followers reassembles and discusses this epiphany of a book that they have read and they all agree to buy copies for all of their friends and coworkers - as I recall, one guy was going to buy cases of the book for his whole dept at work. Of course the last page is the coup de grais - an order form for more books!
Oh pooh, now I have gone and done what Johnson did - gone and wasted a whole lot of words when those 5 in caps above would have sufficed nicely.
Middle third is this fairy tale that I can sum up in five (5) words: SHIT HAPPENS, GET OVER IT.
And finally the most insulting part is the last third where that group of high-potential future cult followers reassembles and discusses this epiphany of a book that they have read and they all agree to buy copies for all of their friends and coworkers - as I recall, one guy was going to buy cases of the book for his whole dept at work. Of course the last page is the coup de grais - an order form for more books!
Oh pooh, now I have gone and done what Johnson did - gone and wasted a whole lot of words when those 5 in caps above would have sufficed nicely.
October 8, 2020
Change or get run over !
A great many people have recommended this particular one to me; I did not read.
We might be the most evolved species on the planet but sometimes we do over-process. Adapting and forecasting change lurking around the corner is mark of sheer greatness.
The best quote perhaps was curbing the wrong interpretations that might be drawn out : that you should try behaving in a new way in the same relationship. Do not change the person but innovate your habits. If you love your partner, let them know about it in a million different ways that change everyday.
Novelty is what keeps things moving.
The story is perfectly written and takes up one hour of your life but may just give you a knowledge of a lifetime. I can see these terms being recited to people in the company I work or the football teams I lead.
And I quote,
Keep your senses sharp. Sniff the changes and scurry to action.
And of course, Be Worldclass like the very book itself.
Verdict : Spencer Johnson hits the bulls-eye in a 60 minute book.
A great many people have recommended this particular one to me; I did not read.
We might be the most evolved species on the planet but sometimes we do over-process. Adapting and forecasting change lurking around the corner is mark of sheer greatness.
The best quote perhaps was curbing the wrong interpretations that might be drawn out : that you should try behaving in a new way in the same relationship. Do not change the person but innovate your habits. If you love your partner, let them know about it in a million different ways that change everyday.
Novelty is what keeps things moving.
The story is perfectly written and takes up one hour of your life but may just give you a knowledge of a lifetime. I can see these terms being recited to people in the company I work or the football teams I lead.
And I quote,
"Keep moving whilst riding a bicycle. Else you fall down."
Keep your senses sharp. Sniff the changes and scurry to action.
And of course, Be Worldclass like the very book itself.
Verdict : Spencer Johnson hits the bulls-eye in a 60 minute book.
October 23, 2012
Dear Mr. Christ,
I was at that meeting you held the other day up on the hill - I guess you wouldn't remember me, I was at the back of the crowd. Anyway, I really liked it. I gotta admit, some of it kind of went over my head, but it was a great speech. I particularly liked the part with blessed are the cheesemakers, I thought that was inspired. Most people never think about cheese, but I think about it all the time.
Well, like I said, some of it was hard to get, but I talked about it afterwards with my friend Brian and he explained it to me. Then I liked it even more! Yeah, that is a very cool message about living in the moment and not overthinking things. You have something there. But then I said to myself, what is this guy missing? And the answer came to me clear as clear: cheese. Just one single mention, and do you know, Brian couldn't even remember that bit.
So, I hope you won't find this presumptuous or anything, but I wrote a longer version, playing up the cheese and making it more, you know, business-friendly. I've attached a PDF and I'd love to know what you think!
Best wishes,
Spencer
Dear Spencer,
I wouldn't have used as many words, but I very much appreciated the Parable of the Cheese. I look forward to seeing you again.
Your friend,
Jesus
I was at that meeting you held the other day up on the hill - I guess you wouldn't remember me, I was at the back of the crowd. Anyway, I really liked it. I gotta admit, some of it kind of went over my head, but it was a great speech. I particularly liked the part with blessed are the cheesemakers, I thought that was inspired. Most people never think about cheese, but I think about it all the time.
Well, like I said, some of it was hard to get, but I talked about it afterwards with my friend Brian and he explained it to me. Then I liked it even more! Yeah, that is a very cool message about living in the moment and not overthinking things. You have something there. But then I said to myself, what is this guy missing? And the answer came to me clear as clear: cheese. Just one single mention, and do you know, Brian couldn't even remember that bit.
So, I hope you won't find this presumptuous or anything, but I wrote a longer version, playing up the cheese and making it more, you know, business-friendly. I've attached a PDF and I'd love to know what you think!
Best wishes,
Spencer
Dear Spencer,
I wouldn't have used as many words, but I very much appreciated the Parable of the Cheese. I look forward to seeing you again.
Your friend,
Jesus
February 27, 2019
Way too cheesy (I couldn't resist). While this was probably revolutionary at some point to some people... for me this one did nothing. It's like self-help for middle-graders.
Basically, we've got ourselves a cheesebuster story, about Mice and Men (maybe Of Mice and Men was the original inspiration to compose this pamphlet?) that live in a labyrinth, finding lots of freedom and Cheese in it. Ughhh...
Q:
But Cheese never reappeared. (c)
Q:
It's maze time! (c)
Q:
Why don't you just wait here with me until they put the Cheese back? (c)
Q:
Why didn't I get up and move with the Cheese sooner? (c)
Q:
The Quicker you let go of old Cheese. The sooner you find new Cheese. (c)
Q:
Perhaps most important of all, he realized that there is always New Cheese out there whether you recognize it at the time or not. And that you are rewarded with it when you go past your fear and enjoy the adventure. (c)
Basically, we've got ourselves a cheesebuster story, about Mice and Men (maybe Of Mice and Men was the original inspiration to compose this pamphlet?) that live in a labyrinth, finding lots of freedom and Cheese in it. Ughhh...
Q:
But Cheese never reappeared. (c)
Q:
It's maze time! (c)
Q:
Why don't you just wait here with me until they put the Cheese back? (c)
Q:
Why didn't I get up and move with the Cheese sooner? (c)
Q:
The Quicker you let go of old Cheese. The sooner you find new Cheese. (c)
Q:
Perhaps most important of all, he realized that there is always New Cheese out there whether you recognize it at the time or not. And that you are rewarded with it when you go past your fear and enjoy the adventure. (c)
October 5, 2007
When my boss first gave me this book to read, I was definately in place where I had no interest in even knowing what my attitude was towards change. After taking an hour to read the book, I found it to be ridiculous and that it didn't apply to me at all -- "I had always been an advocate for change, what the hell was my boss trying to tell me?"
After going through some difficult times at work with restructure and having to change peoples' roles and responsibilities, I decided to re-read the story about 2 men and 2 mice and what their outlook on change was. To my surprise, because I was actually looking for help with regards to moving my people forward and helping adjust to the changes that were happening around them, I found the book to be more than helpful. I recognized that for the longest time, I was pretty closed minded and was definately going to die with the cheese if I didn't start embracing change and the outcomes it brings. I also recognized that I had a sniff, a scurry, a hem and lots of haws running around my team. With that knowledge, it helped me focus on how to manage them better which delivered better results from them and also made them happier employees.
After going through some difficult times at work with restructure and having to change peoples' roles and responsibilities, I decided to re-read the story about 2 men and 2 mice and what their outlook on change was. To my surprise, because I was actually looking for help with regards to moving my people forward and helping adjust to the changes that were happening around them, I found the book to be more than helpful. I recognized that for the longest time, I was pretty closed minded and was definately going to die with the cheese if I didn't start embracing change and the outcomes it brings. I also recognized that I had a sniff, a scurry, a hem and lots of haws running around my team. With that knowledge, it helped me focus on how to manage them better which delivered better results from them and also made them happier employees.
May 1, 2016
This is a book about how two mice named Sniff and Scurry and two miniature humans named Hem and Haw (that's right) are trapped in a maze that serves as a metaphor for the inherent restrictions and viccisitudes of our lives. One day some invisible force beyond their control takes the cheese from a sector of the maze, sending our mice and little people looking for more, if, indeed there is anymore to be had. Sniff and Scurry, we are told, have the right attitude because "they keep life simple...they don't overanalyze or overcomplicate things," and rather than question why the cheese was taken from them they accept change and just get out there and bust their balls humping it through that maze like good little unquestioning furry mini-zombies looking for more. Hem and Haw, like too many humans, we are told, over-think things and fixate on their past comforts and expectations and spend too much time stewing over the unfairness of their loss of food rather than fearlessly getting out there and looking through the maze for more.
So, who moved/stole their cheese? That question is never answered. Nay, it is, posits this book, a completely unimportant and irrelevant question to ask, because, fellow bitches, the system is how it is, it's gonna stay that way, you can't do a fuckin' thing to change that and it's just too goddamned bad if you don't like it, because your cheese is going to be stolen and sent to South China and that's that. So stop bellyaching about jobs and health care. Just get yourself rich with stinking piles of cheese, or just shut up about it...liberals!
Another key question that is not asked is: "Who designed, built and maintains the maze and whose interests does that serve?"
I have a theory, not addressed in the book, that stinking rich executive-types, most of whom have driven their companies into the ground or into slave-wage zones and sent their employees off to look for "New Cheese" while enjoying their own golden-parachute-financed retirements and/or bailouts, may be among those who have stolen our cheese. But, according to the book, such things are not only outside the realm of questioning, but are irrelevant. The very idea of changing or creating a more equitable system is simply beyond the pale. You won't be the master of your own cheese, suckers, so be happy with what you can get. Those who take the cheese always know better.
In an unexpected turn of events, however, some disgruntled employees at the facility where this book was printed--who had just been told that their cheeses were being moved to Mexico and they would lose their $15-an-hour living-wage jobs to $1-an-hour Mexican slaves--decided to slip an alternative version of this story into some of the copies of the book, some of which turned up on Amazon and the late-lamented Border's.
In this version, Hem and Haw and Sniff and Scurry notice their cheese missing and, after looking for two years for no cheese dispensaries and finding themselves at the end of their 99-weeks of insufficient government-issue unemployment-benefit cheese rations, decide to put Hem and Haw's human smarts and Sniff and Scurry's uncerebral pluck to new uses and ends. Since cheese is the goal, or the ends, and since the ends justify the means, they decide to figure out who is taking their cheese, prevent further cheese-moving shenanigans, and keep those tasty fromage comestibles for themselves. Thinking "outside the maze", they decide that having their cheese taken away arbitrarily--especially by the one-percent who already own more cheese than the other 99 percent of cheese-eaters combined--is not the kind of change they will accept, and instead of being on the receiving end of change decide to mete out a little change of their own--for a change (after all, who says that change always has to come from "above," from outside? Why not from below, from the bottom up? I know, change from the bottom is class warfare; change/cheese moving from the top is, well, the marketplace working like it should). Deciding not to take it anymore, the plucky mice and men donned commando gear, staked out the various points of infiltration, and with their cache of weapons including Molotov cocktails, took out the greedy cheese-hoarding scumbags.
No cheese was stolen thereafter.
But who produced the future cheese? After all, there were no more job exporters...I mean, "job creators." The anarcho-syndicalist collective, of course. And there was cheese for all.
So, who moved/stole their cheese? That question is never answered. Nay, it is, posits this book, a completely unimportant and irrelevant question to ask, because, fellow bitches, the system is how it is, it's gonna stay that way, you can't do a fuckin' thing to change that and it's just too goddamned bad if you don't like it, because your cheese is going to be stolen and sent to South China and that's that. So stop bellyaching about jobs and health care. Just get yourself rich with stinking piles of cheese, or just shut up about it...liberals!
Another key question that is not asked is: "Who designed, built and maintains the maze and whose interests does that serve?"
I have a theory, not addressed in the book, that stinking rich executive-types, most of whom have driven their companies into the ground or into slave-wage zones and sent their employees off to look for "New Cheese" while enjoying their own golden-parachute-financed retirements and/or bailouts, may be among those who have stolen our cheese. But, according to the book, such things are not only outside the realm of questioning, but are irrelevant. The very idea of changing or creating a more equitable system is simply beyond the pale. You won't be the master of your own cheese, suckers, so be happy with what you can get. Those who take the cheese always know better.
In an unexpected turn of events, however, some disgruntled employees at the facility where this book was printed--who had just been told that their cheeses were being moved to Mexico and they would lose their $15-an-hour living-wage jobs to $1-an-hour Mexican slaves--decided to slip an alternative version of this story into some of the copies of the book, some of which turned up on Amazon and the late-lamented Border's.
In this version, Hem and Haw and Sniff and Scurry notice their cheese missing and, after looking for two years for no cheese dispensaries and finding themselves at the end of their 99-weeks of insufficient government-issue unemployment-benefit cheese rations, decide to put Hem and Haw's human smarts and Sniff and Scurry's uncerebral pluck to new uses and ends. Since cheese is the goal, or the ends, and since the ends justify the means, they decide to figure out who is taking their cheese, prevent further cheese-moving shenanigans, and keep those tasty fromage comestibles for themselves. Thinking "outside the maze", they decide that having their cheese taken away arbitrarily--especially by the one-percent who already own more cheese than the other 99 percent of cheese-eaters combined--is not the kind of change they will accept, and instead of being on the receiving end of change decide to mete out a little change of their own--for a change (after all, who says that change always has to come from "above," from outside? Why not from below, from the bottom up? I know, change from the bottom is class warfare; change/cheese moving from the top is, well, the marketplace working like it should). Deciding not to take it anymore, the plucky mice and men donned commando gear, staked out the various points of infiltration, and with their cache of weapons including Molotov cocktails, took out the greedy cheese-hoarding scumbags.
No cheese was stolen thereafter.
But who produced the future cheese? After all, there were no more job exporters...I mean, "job creators." The anarcho-syndicalist collective, of course. And there was cheese for all.
September 7, 2020
"a change imposed is a change opposed."
Seeing how short this book was, I wasn't really expecting Who Moved My Cheese? to deliver a lot, though I've seeing it being recommended by many as a great self development book. But the very quick time required to go through the book shifted my opinion drastically, in that, this is indeed one of the most clearly written books on the necessity of adapting and enjoying the change and the importance of it.
To me, all three parts of the book were important, and helped fine-tune the self interpretation I made for the second part. I don't think the book is so successful only because it delivers the message clearly and concisely but also because it adds a lot of humor to the subject with those unique characters, which gives the reader an opportunity to understand the message in an objective yet relaxed way.
"It all depends on what you choose to believe."
Seeing how short this book was, I wasn't really expecting Who Moved My Cheese? to deliver a lot, though I've seeing it being recommended by many as a great self development book. But the very quick time required to go through the book shifted my opinion drastically, in that, this is indeed one of the most clearly written books on the necessity of adapting and enjoying the change and the importance of it.
To me, all three parts of the book were important, and helped fine-tune the self interpretation I made for the second part. I don't think the book is so successful only because it delivers the message clearly and concisely but also because it adds a lot of humor to the subject with those unique characters, which gives the reader an opportunity to understand the message in an objective yet relaxed way.
"It all depends on what you choose to believe."
August 23, 2023
“When you stop being afraid, you feel good."
It's about facing change head-on and not allowing fear to hold you back. I'd heard so many excellent things about this book over the years that I wasn't expecting it to be any good. It was, however. The author illustrates with a short story how life can change quickly and how to adjust to those changes. He goes on to explain why it's crucial to anticipate and monitor change in your life.
The author of the story has mentioned that the cheese in the book represents anything a human strives for. It could be money, fame, reputation, happiness, success, achievements, or anything else.
If you have trouble adapting to new situations and fear change you should read it.
You can go for it, if you like, here or here.
It's about facing change head-on and not allowing fear to hold you back. I'd heard so many excellent things about this book over the years that I wasn't expecting it to be any good. It was, however. The author illustrates with a short story how life can change quickly and how to adjust to those changes. He goes on to explain why it's crucial to anticipate and monitor change in your life.
The author of the story has mentioned that the cheese in the book represents anything a human strives for. It could be money, fame, reputation, happiness, success, achievements, or anything else.
If you have trouble adapting to new situations and fear change you should read it.
You can go for it, if you like, here or here.
January 14, 2008
If you receive this uninspiring, revolting piece of trash from your employer, start looking for another job -- the end is near!
Change is inevitable, but it doesn't mean workers should sit back and accept everything corporate America dishes out.
Change is inevitable, but it doesn't mean workers should sit back and accept everything corporate America dishes out.
April 15, 2012
Reading this reminded me of why I hate pop psych/pop management books. The writing is terrible, the message is oversimplified and the font is gigantic (an effort to pad the book out to 90 pages, I think). And the intro and conclusion are just a marketing ploy to encourage managers to buy lots of copies to give to their employees. This book could be read in 20 minutes, but I'll save you some time and tell you that change will happen in your life, and you have to deal with it. The end.
January 14, 2022
Change
Our natural reaction to comfort, or perceived comfort, is protecting it and hanging onto it. Even as that comfort starts to erode, we are inclined to ignore the obvious and cling to what we know. "Better the devil you know than the devil you don't." Spencer Johnson has written a short and snappy book that explores how and why we should address change in our lives as a matter of regularity. Cheese is a metaphor for "What we want in life", whether in personal or professional circumstances.
The one constant we have in life is CHANGE. "If we do not change, we can become extinct" and "The quicker we let go of old cheese, the sooner we find new cheese". When cheese goes off, it smells, so keep your sense of smell on alert. This is a compelling fable on the importance of keeping 'change' as a way of life and assent to its core principles.
I need to be in the mood for self-development or motivational books. Still, in the right mood, they can often give that little impetus to see things from a different angle or spur us on to make the choices we need to, particularly when those choices are difficult. Sometimes when the fog of constant action and reaction clouds our view of the important things in life, a little novella like this can reset our focus and priorities.
Fables are a powerful means of getting across a message, and this book is one of the most popular books in this genre and understandably so. I would recommend reading this book.
Our natural reaction to comfort, or perceived comfort, is protecting it and hanging onto it. Even as that comfort starts to erode, we are inclined to ignore the obvious and cling to what we know. "Better the devil you know than the devil you don't." Spencer Johnson has written a short and snappy book that explores how and why we should address change in our lives as a matter of regularity. Cheese is a metaphor for "What we want in life", whether in personal or professional circumstances.
The one constant we have in life is CHANGE. "If we do not change, we can become extinct" and "The quicker we let go of old cheese, the sooner we find new cheese". When cheese goes off, it smells, so keep your sense of smell on alert. This is a compelling fable on the importance of keeping 'change' as a way of life and assent to its core principles.
I need to be in the mood for self-development or motivational books. Still, in the right mood, they can often give that little impetus to see things from a different angle or spur us on to make the choices we need to, particularly when those choices are difficult. Sometimes when the fog of constant action and reaction clouds our view of the important things in life, a little novella like this can reset our focus and priorities.
Fables are a powerful means of getting across a message, and this book is one of the most popular books in this genre and understandably so. I would recommend reading this book.
September 26, 2022
What a revitalising read!
Feels like taking a brain shower 🚿 🧼 😉.
An exquisite story narrating an inevitable change managed by four different characters:
- Sniff & Scurry, two Mice and
- Hem & Haw, two Littlepeople resembling human behaviour in their emotions and beliefs.
The plot takes place in a maze where cheese is hidden in different corners and never short of challenges to its above mentioned inhabitants for the cheese is kept on moving. Hence, the necessity for change to survive.
The story encourages us to reflect which character we represent during change management. Are we hemming and hawing as we’re afraid of change or sniffing and scurrying as we are pragmatic enough to adapt to change?
Johnson suggests that adaptability to change is greatly inhibited by:
- our own fear of change as we may be happy in our comfort zone though the cheese is long gone (or we have been blind to see it was mould before it was moved)
- lack of vision for a better life as we may not be able to see ourselves enjoying a nice piece of Brie or Camembert (or Peyrigoux - my personal favourite French soft cheese)
- lack of humour to laugh at ourselves to let go of our outdated beliefs or behaviours for the sake of embracing change with open arms.
=> Only then we’re able to enjoy the road to destination.
Corporate environments have created the sense of urgency around change management by showing drastic examples of companies shutting down or spin offs due to lack of vision and timely adaptation to global technology. So, this book will cross your path more than once in case you’re part of a corporate organisation.
It’s evident that change may trigger resistance in both our personal as well as professional lives and deep-down we may acknowledge that being flexible and adaptive are great assets to possess.
However, easier said than done, reality looks different.
Indeed, no-one would ever want to be Hem who is left behind, yet, we go through different phases in our lives, and we appreciate that we have emotions as human beings that lead us to overanalyse at times and overcomplicate situations to find our own resolution.
I guess my conclusion is that we have a bit of all characters inside of us, sometimes Hem overruling Scurry and sometimes Haw overruling Sniff or vice versa.
It’s about finding the BALANCE and to move at our own pace. In this context, I don’t mean to compromise on our core values.
My key take-away for today is to dream big and envision myself what I am capable of achieving for the next phase in my life.
By the way, my key take-away changes with every read of this book as my mood changes for obvious reasons as a human being 😁🥳, but no worries, if the direction I have taken hasn’t worked out, I am not shy off taking another route 🙌🏻.
C’est la vie 🧀🍷🥖 🐭 💃🏻📚.
Feels like taking a brain shower 🚿 🧼 😉.
An exquisite story narrating an inevitable change managed by four different characters:
- Sniff & Scurry, two Mice and
- Hem & Haw, two Littlepeople resembling human behaviour in their emotions and beliefs.
The plot takes place in a maze where cheese is hidden in different corners and never short of challenges to its above mentioned inhabitants for the cheese is kept on moving. Hence, the necessity for change to survive.
The story encourages us to reflect which character we represent during change management. Are we hemming and hawing as we’re afraid of change or sniffing and scurrying as we are pragmatic enough to adapt to change?
Johnson suggests that adaptability to change is greatly inhibited by:
- our own fear of change as we may be happy in our comfort zone though the cheese is long gone (or we have been blind to see it was mould before it was moved)
- lack of vision for a better life as we may not be able to see ourselves enjoying a nice piece of Brie or Camembert (or Peyrigoux - my personal favourite French soft cheese)
- lack of humour to laugh at ourselves to let go of our outdated beliefs or behaviours for the sake of embracing change with open arms.
=> Only then we’re able to enjoy the road to destination.
Corporate environments have created the sense of urgency around change management by showing drastic examples of companies shutting down or spin offs due to lack of vision and timely adaptation to global technology. So, this book will cross your path more than once in case you’re part of a corporate organisation.
It’s evident that change may trigger resistance in both our personal as well as professional lives and deep-down we may acknowledge that being flexible and adaptive are great assets to possess.
However, easier said than done, reality looks different.
Indeed, no-one would ever want to be Hem who is left behind, yet, we go through different phases in our lives, and we appreciate that we have emotions as human beings that lead us to overanalyse at times and overcomplicate situations to find our own resolution.
I guess my conclusion is that we have a bit of all characters inside of us, sometimes Hem overruling Scurry and sometimes Haw overruling Sniff or vice versa.
It’s about finding the BALANCE and to move at our own pace. In this context, I don’t mean to compromise on our core values.
My key take-away for today is to dream big and envision myself what I am capable of achieving for the next phase in my life.
By the way, my key take-away changes with every read of this book as my mood changes for obvious reasons as a human being 😁🥳, but no worries, if the direction I have taken hasn’t worked out, I am not shy off taking another route 🙌🏻.
C’est la vie 🧀🍷🥖 🐭 💃🏻📚.
February 26, 2008
This book reminds me of an old Groucho Marx routine: Patient: Doctor, I get a stabbing pain in my eye every time I take a drink of tea. What should I do? Doctor: Take the spoon out of the cup. [rim-shot]. Sadly, the lack of ability to see the obvious is pandemic in the corporate world, so I am not at all surprised that this restatement of the obvious was such a major hit in the business world. Not that I am cynical after my life as a corporate prisoner, but my observation is that there really are a lot of people in business so clueless that this book IS a revelation to them. My observations are not limited to the lower rungs of the corporate ladder. This disease goes all the way to the top and is especially rampant among middle and upper management. The interesting thing is that in the corporate life, everybody sees themselves as Dilbert, but nobody sees themselves as the pointy-haired boss, Ted the Marketing guy, the clueless VP, or as one of the Elbonian workers. Only a few see themselves as Alice or Wally. HEY, WE CAN'T ALL BE DILBERT HERE! Sadly, even the most motivated of corporate drones read books like this only because their boss read it because someone else read it or heard about it at one of those motivational seminars put on by the author. The whole business world then has a businessgasm about this revelation-du-jour--and the very next day, goes back to doing what they have always done and thinking the way they have always thought--until the next business book restating the obvious or putting a new face on recycled ideas from the jurasic period comes out. And so, the saga continues.
December 20, 2008
عندما يتغير ما حولنا.. قد نستغربه ومن ثم نغض الطرف عنه.. قد نحاربه.. قد نعيش معه!
تصرفاتنا فرع عن تصوراتنا
التغيير يأتي من الداخل
علينا ملاحظة التغييرات الطفيفة والتنبه لها لأنها قد تؤدي لتغييرات جذرية
الحياة وتيرة من التغييرات علينا التكيف معها والاستمتاع بها ومنحها قدرها من النشاط والانتاجية
الإيمان سرّ التغيير.. وهو سنة الله في خلقه
فكرة تغيير الذات للوصول إلى هدف ما ليست فكرة جديدة على المعتقد الإسلامي
الجديد في الكتاب هو مدى تكيفنا مع التغيير الخارجي المألوف ومدى تقبلنا لأن نتغير بدورنا!
قصة بسيطة معبرة
شكرا لمن أعارتني كتابها :)
تصرفاتنا فرع عن تصوراتنا
التغيير يأتي من الداخل
علينا ملاحظة التغييرات الطفيفة والتنبه لها لأنها قد تؤدي لتغييرات جذرية
الحياة وتيرة من التغييرات علينا التكيف معها والاستمتاع بها ومنحها قدرها من النشاط والانتاجية
الإيمان سرّ التغيير.. وهو سنة الله في خلقه
فكرة تغيير الذات للوصول إلى هدف ما ليست فكرة جديدة على المعتقد الإسلامي
الجديد في الكتاب هو مدى تكيفنا مع التغيير الخارجي المألوف ومدى تقبلنا لأن نتغير بدورنا!
قصة بسيطة معبرة
شكرا لمن أعارتني كتابها :)
May 4, 2008
...Reading this book is like sitting through one of those stupid motivational speeches. It was obviously written as such, and then a loose "story" was thrown over top of the content to make it into a book. I mean, there are points, where you can actually visualize a person showing the power point slides with one of the sayings in the book written on it, trying to pump up the crowd by saying it with force, and the crowd clapping...
The book took me about 45 minutes to read, but it felt much longer (much like motivational speeches!). The book can be summed up as follows:
Change happens. It's better to move on when it does than expect things to go back to how they were, and it's better to prepare for change then expect things to stay how they are.
That's it. You don't need to read the book now. I mean, that is the summary of the story. They then threw together a pointless storyline of someone telling a group of old friends this story. Then after the story is over, it has all of the friends talking about how the story impacted them. This part felt like an informercial, and I half expected to see "Dramatization" or something along those lines when it was talking about the "success stories".
I would really hate to work at a company that based their model off of what was said in this book...I can just see it now: All around the office, the little action figures of the characters, the sayings plastered on every wall...It would just make me depressed and angry.
Maybe it's just because I'm like the rats (Scurry and Sniffy) in this book that I thought this book was completely pointless...but even if I were like the Littlepeople (Hem and Haw), I would really hope there was a better way to present this message. Basically the four characters represent the different types of people with respect to change (Scurry runs off and takes immediate action, Sniffy sniffs out change happening and prepares for it in advance, Haw is reluctant to change, but eventually realizes he needs to, and although he's afraid, he ventures out to find his "new cheese", and Hem is the idiot who just sits back waiting for things to go back to how they were.
Anyways, I obviously did not like this book, and I wish I had my 45 minutes back. It was just pointless, longer than it needed, and the message/"plot" was just "cheesy"...
(Ok...bad pun, I know...)
The book took me about 45 minutes to read, but it felt much longer (much like motivational speeches!). The book can be summed up as follows:
Change happens. It's better to move on when it does than expect things to go back to how they were, and it's better to prepare for change then expect things to stay how they are.
That's it. You don't need to read the book now. I mean, that is the summary of the story. They then threw together a pointless storyline of someone telling a group of old friends this story. Then after the story is over, it has all of the friends talking about how the story impacted them. This part felt like an informercial, and I half expected to see "Dramatization" or something along those lines when it was talking about the "success stories".
I would really hate to work at a company that based their model off of what was said in this book...I can just see it now: All around the office, the little action figures of the characters, the sayings plastered on every wall...It would just make me depressed and angry.
Maybe it's just because I'm like the rats (Scurry and Sniffy) in this book that I thought this book was completely pointless...but even if I were like the Littlepeople (Hem and Haw), I would really hope there was a better way to present this message. Basically the four characters represent the different types of people with respect to change (Scurry runs off and takes immediate action, Sniffy sniffs out change happening and prepares for it in advance, Haw is reluctant to change, but eventually realizes he needs to, and although he's afraid, he ventures out to find his "new cheese", and Hem is the idiot who just sits back waiting for things to go back to how they were.
Anyways, I obviously did not like this book, and I wish I had my 45 minutes back. It was just pointless, longer than it needed, and the message/"plot" was just "cheesy"...
(Ok...bad pun, I know...)
March 14, 2017
Can't believe it took me only about an hour to finish the book :)
Wow, this book is truly what I need right now! Thank you to the author for such an inspiring and motivational story, maybe it's finally time I realise that it's necessary for me to find my own cheese! by getting into that MAZE out there! :D
This one will never gets old, I assure you, and I highly recommend it to literally anyone!
Wow, this book is truly what I need right now! Thank you to the author for such an inspiring and motivational story, maybe it's finally time I realise that it's necessary for me to find my own cheese! by getting into that MAZE out there! :D
This one will never gets old, I assure you, and I highly recommend it to literally anyone!
June 10, 2008
My 9 month old son has books with smaller type and which make more sense. The author is worse than Hitler.
September 22, 2023
This book is one of the most referenced C-Suite 'suggested reads' I have ever come across. If for no other reason read it so that you and the CEO have something to talk about at the yearly company BBQ. This is a great book to read before the company Christmas party - will open up doors of conversation that will get you noticed!
January 1, 2023
What perfect timing for me to listen to this book as the new year has begun. Perhaps, we all need a reality check I love how the mice, Sniff and Scurry along with little people Hem and Haw did definitely resonate with me as all the change we as the people of the earth have experienced in recent years.
For all, change is inevitable. It is how you prepare for it that makes a world of difference. As I enter 2023, I will work at better better at change. (right now, I am probably a C+) but with energy directed in the right arena, I think I can avoid the situations that wear me down. (starting with listening to the news)
Happy New Year everyone and perhaps we can all be the change we need to be to make ourselves happy and productive people.
For all, change is inevitable. It is how you prepare for it that makes a world of difference. As I enter 2023, I will work at better better at change. (right now, I am probably a C+) but with energy directed in the right arena, I think I can avoid the situations that wear me down. (starting with listening to the news)
Happy New Year everyone and perhaps we can all be the change we need to be to make ourselves happy and productive people.
April 4, 2007
Is there a more asinine book on the planet? I'd be hard pressed to find it. That is was a bestseller speaks volumes to the apalling lack of real education in America today. I am fairly certain that they force you to read this book in hell... oh, wait I'm confusing eternal damnation with my office. Sorry.
September 10, 2017
After his adventure in the maze, Haw wrote a bestselling book about his cheese sayings and sold it in exchange for royalties in cheese. Now he gets all types of cheese simply sitting on his bottom in one corner of the maze while the others run around looking for cheese after reading his book.
August 3, 2017
این کتاب رو چندین بار خوندم. در واقع هر وقت احساس میکنم ی آدم بی فایده بی انگیزه ام میخونمش. حس خوبی بهم میده، ی جورایی تلنگره واسم.
October 19, 2017
For an inspirational, self-help book, Who Moved My Cheese is an easy, quick read but quite unpleasant too with a very patronizing tone to its narration. I just picked it up out of whim as the Internet is full of positive reviews and praise, so naturally I was curious and also since I had an ebook stashed since forever. But, now after having read this, I am not exactly sure what to make out of it. Well, I am glad I didn't buy and read this and another positive thing was that it was a really short read.
In a single sentence, this book tries to explain the significance of adapting and reacting positively to changes which is in fact quite a decent subject for an inspirational book, but Who Moved My Cheese does absolutely no justice with it. The story was exorbitantly simplistic and entirely obvious and I found myself absolutely not agreeing with a lot in here. I am not going to go into details about characters who are called Sniff and Scurry, Hem and Haw and who actually sniff and scurry, hem and haw.
One thing that I found really irritating was how the author, in his slightly condescending manner, tries to force the readers to believe that all change is good change and the faster you let go of things the sooner you can get back to enjoying life as before. No I surely do not agree with this. There are some things one simply does not get over with. What about fatal health issues, or the loss of a loved one? Yes, one learns to live with it but does not really get over it. Ever. Yes, change is inevitable. Situations change, people change, life happens and hardly anything ever remains the same, but, that still doesn't mean that all change is good, or that people need to be happy about every change that occurs. Everything does not revolve around enjoying every change. Adapting and accepting a situation is one thing, trying to happy about every other situation, fair or not is entirely another.
Sorry this review was more of a rant, and I know I've used too much of the word change, but I was totally disappointed with this so called bestseller and I needed to vent. Thanks for reading.
In a single sentence, this book tries to explain the significance of adapting and reacting positively to changes which is in fact quite a decent subject for an inspirational book, but Who Moved My Cheese does absolutely no justice with it. The story was exorbitantly simplistic and entirely obvious and I found myself absolutely not agreeing with a lot in here. I am not going to go into details about characters who are called Sniff and Scurry, Hem and Haw and who actually sniff and scurry, hem and haw.
One thing that I found really irritating was how the author, in his slightly condescending manner, tries to force the readers to believe that all change is good change and the faster you let go of things the sooner you can get back to enjoying life as before. No I surely do not agree with this. There are some things one simply does not get over with. What about fatal health issues, or the loss of a loved one? Yes, one learns to live with it but does not really get over it. Ever. Yes, change is inevitable. Situations change, people change, life happens and hardly anything ever remains the same, but, that still doesn't mean that all change is good, or that people need to be happy about every change that occurs. Everything does not revolve around enjoying every change. Adapting and accepting a situation is one thing, trying to happy about every other situation, fair or not is entirely another.
Sorry this review was more of a rant, and I know I've used too much of the word change, but I was totally disappointed with this so called bestseller and I needed to vent. Thanks for reading.
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