Who moved my cheese? by Dr Spencer Johnson

Review by Andrew Gray

Change can be a blessing or a curse, depending on your perspective. The message of this book is that all can come to see it as a blessing, if they understand the nature of cheese and the role it plays in their lives.This is a short (30 minute read) story that takes place in a maze. Four beings live in that maze: Sniff and Scurry are mice, non-analytical and non-judgmental; they just want cheese and are willing to do whatever it takes to get it. Hem and Haw are “little people”, mouse-size humans who have an entirely different relationship with cheese.

For Hem and Haw cheese is their self-image. Their lives and belief systems are built around the cheese they’ve found. Most of us reading the story will see the cheese as something related to our livelihoods–our jobs, our career paths, the industries we work in–although it can stand for anything, from health to relationships. The point of the story is that we have to be alert to changes in the cheese and be prepared to go running off in search of new sources of cheese when the cheese we have runs out.