BOOK REVIEW

BY:-
Manish ranjan Singh
BBDU, IMED, PUNE

MBA (General), Div- B

Roll No- 65
 ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Dr. Spencer Johnson is known for the Value Tales

series of children's books, and for his 1998
motivational book Who Moved My Cheese?: An
Amazing Way to Deal with Change in Your Work and
in Your Life, which recurred on the New York Times
Bestseller list, on the Publishers Weekly Hardcover
nonfiction list. Johnson is chairman of Spencer
Johnson Partners.
Johnson also wrote the book "Yes" or "No": The Guide to Better
Decisions (1992), which has been translated into a number of languages
including Italian, Spanish, Korean and German. He co-authored the One
Minute Manager series of books with management writer Ken
Blanchard, though each author has added their own books to the
series. His latest book is Peaks And Valleys.

Johnson's books have been translated into twenty-six languages.

Spencer Johnson was born in Mitchell, South Dakota, graduated from

Notre Dame High School of Sherman Oaks, California, in 1957, received
a B.A. degree in psychology from the University of Southern California in
1963, and his M.D. from the Royal College of Surgeons in Ireland.
Johnson currently lives in Hawaii and New Hampshire.
 ABOUT THE BOOK

Who Moved My Cheese?

An A-Mazing Way to Deal with

Change in Your Work and in Your
Life

by Spencer Johnson, M.D., Foreword by

Kenneth Blanchard, Ph.D.

Publisher: Putnam

There are four characters :-

Hem and Haw – Little people
Sniff and Scurry – Rats

All four characters search for Cheese in the maze

Cheese is the Metaphor

Cheese is what you want in life –
o Whether it is good job
o A loving relationship
o Money or a Possession
 o Health or spiritual peace of mind
Why this book ?
Have you ever wondered if there was an amazing way to deal with change
in your work and in your life? If yes, then, “Who Moved My Cheese?” by Dr
Spencer Johnson is exactly what you need. What attracted me to read this book
was the title. It offered food for thought and made me curious. Also, the fact that
it was a small book with only about 96 pages helped a lot!

Book Summary
Change- The ever constant star in the horizon of our lives- is inevitable.
Every individual has a different approach to deal with this change. While some sit
back, blame God and pity their luck; some simply refuse to adapt to change. But
there are others who are always ready and are quick on their feet to make the
most of the change.

Short Summary: Cheese is found, moved, then found again. But did
someone cut the Cheese?

Extended Summary: This book starts with A Gathering of several former

schoolmates over lunch. Their conversation leads to work and relationships.
Everyone was trying to cope with the unexpected changes that were happening to
them in recent years. And most of them admitted that they did not know a good
way to handle them. That is when, Michael, narrated to them this story.
A story about four characters- two mice, Sniff and Scurry, and two “Little people”
named Hem and Haw, living in a maze and looking for cheese to nourish them and
make them happy. Cheese is a metaphor for what one wants in life- a good job,
healthy life, a loving relationship or money. And maze is where one looks for the
cheese- workplace, family or community.

This is the story of two mice, Sniff and Scurry, and two little people, Hem
and Haw. They live in a maze and spend their days in search of cheese. One day
they come upon a great find (Cheese Station C). There is an abundance of cheese
and they settle in, growing fat and lazy. Hem and Haw begin to see themselves as
“owners” of the cheese. But then, one day, the cheese is gone. Sniff and Scurry
put back on their running shoes and begin to explore the maze, looking for new
cheese. Hem and Haw feel bitter as they’ve come to think they’re entitled to the
cheese. They have become afraid of the maze and sulk around. But one day Haw
decides it’s time to go out in search of new cheese. Hem refuses to join his quest.
Haw finds his running shoes, laces them up and goes out in search of new cheese.
Along the way, he finds morsels of cheese, but nothing that can sustain him for
long. He keeps searching as he learns new truths, such as “what you are afraid of
is never as bad as what you imagine”. He draws graffiti on the maze, pictures of
cheese with tidbits of wisdom inside, in case Hem decides to follow him. Examples
include:-

“If You Do Not Change, You Become Extinct.”

“What Would You Do If You Were Not Afraid?”
“Movement in a New Direction Helps You Find New Cheese.”
“Old Beliefs Do Not Lead You To New Cheese”

Along the way, Haw begins to enjoy the journey. He discovers that you “can
believe that change will harm you and resist it. Or you can believe that finding
new cheese will help you, and embrace the change”. He also begins to use his
mind to envision himself finding something that is better. He reflects on his
mistakes and plans for the future and, in the end, discovers an even more
abundant cache of cheese than had existed in Cheese Station C. But as he enjoys
all the cheese in this new station, he keeps his running shoes nearby for the time
he’ll have to return to the maze in search of cheese.

At the end of his journey, Haw summarizes wisdom learned: -

 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’s
getting old)
 Adapt to Change Quickly (The quicker you let go of old cheese, the
sooner you can enjoy new cheese)
 Change (Move with the cheese)
  Enjoy Change! (Savor the Adventure and enjoy the taste of new
cheese)
 Be Ready to Change Quickly and Enjoy it Again and Again (They keep
moving the cheese)

The mice with their simple brain and good instincts and the Littlepeople
with their complex brains, filled with many beliefs and emotions, searched for
cheese every day.
The mice showed the same vigour and enthusiasm everyday while the Little
people awoke each day a little later, dressed a little slower and grew ignorant to
the consequences once they found cheese.
Theme Of The Book

The writings on the wall of the maze made by Haw makes one easily
understand how change affects one’s life. After reading each writing on the wall, I
was astonished myself thinking about its obvious simplicity and straightforward
nature.

 Having Cheese Makes Us Happy

 If We Do Not Change, We Can Become Extinct
 Smell The Cheese Often So We Know When It’s Getting Old
 Movement In A New Direction Helps We Find New Cheese
 The Quicker You Let Go Of The Old Cheese, The Sooner We Find New
Cheese
 It Is Safer To Search In The Maze Than Remain In A Cheeseless Situation
 Noticing Small Changes Early Helps Us Adapt To The Bigger Changes That
Are To Come
 Move With The Cheese And Enjoy It
 We must move beyond Our fear to enjoy the Cheese
 To have new Cheese We must let go of the old Cheese
Conclusion

This book revolutionizes one’s outlook to change and with this new attitude,
success in today’s changing times in definitely assured. Irrespective of age, gender
and caste, this book is surely to help one and all. It may seem like reading a school
book initially because of its simple language and effortless flow but that is
precisely the beauty of this book. It makes one understand the situation and the
solution easily and thus, helps in transforming one’s attitude towards change.

Who Moved My Cheese? , seems to say that no matter what changes, no matter
what, we should see it as a good thing. Surely, sometimes, change must be a bad
thing. Surely, sometimes, it should be resisted. Surely, sometimes, we should
stand to our ground.

 We must change when the change occurs

 We must let go off the past and face the future with true spirit
 We must overcome our fears to achieve our goals
 Thank You….!
&
Enjoy the Change…

And the CHEESE…!!!