PDF Summary:Who Moved My Cheese?, by Spencer Johnson

...

• Hem has come to regard the cheese as his entitlement. He feels he deserves it.
• When the cheese disappears, he complains about the unfairness. He gets angry and seeks someone to blame.
• Hem denies reality, believing and insisting to Haw that the cheese will reappear.
• Hem holds onto the past. He thinks that digging in and doing what he’s done in the past will negate change. (He keeps exploring the neighboring area for cheese, instead of venturing out for new cheese)
• And despite a lack of success, and despite the fact that he is hurting himself, Hem refuses to act any differently.

Haw is the character who experiences the most change in the story. Initially, like Haw, he’s upset, overwhelmed and also in shock that the cheese has disappeared. At first he follows Hem’s lead in sitting around complaining and waiting for the cheese to reappear. He whines about the injustice of it all.

But eventually Haw realizes that things aren’t going to improve unless he acts. Despite Hem’s attempts to discourage him, Haw strikes out on his own to find new cheese. He is afraid of failing, but he overcomes his fear by asking himself, “What would...

...

*   Sniffs can help a company innovate by sniffing out opportunity.
*   Action-oriented Scurrys can get things done.
*   Haws are hesitant but can adapt with encouragement.
*   Hems may choose not to adapt even when given the evidence. They might then stop being good fits for your organization.

• Personal relationships can appear “old” like “old cheese,” but this may be the result of old, now unproductive behaviors. New attitudes and behaviors can transform a relationship into something better (new cheese).

• People are more afraid of and more resistant to change when it’s imposed on them from above, because they feel powerless. Peer pressure can also be a factor. Understanding that change is natural and has advantages can help lessen resistance.
  • One suggested strategy is to ask your colleagues to read the book. People can then self-identify with the characters, and no one wants to be seen as a Hem!
• Even though you fear change because of what you think you’re losing, you can end up with something better.
  • Example: A family has to move from the city to the mountains for work. The teenage son is crushed, since he has to give...

...

Imagine success: Envisioning what success looks like, and imagining yourself succeeding, can improve your attitude. When you think about what you will gain, rather than what you are losing, you realize change can be for the better.

• In the story: Haw at first imagined Sniff and Scurry enjoying new cheese, then he imagined himself, in realistic detail, sitting in his own pile of all kinds of new cheeses. This vision motivated him to keep pushing forward to find new cheese.
• When you imagine success, paint a picture in your mind of vivid detail. Think about how you’d behave in this new successful world. Imagine how you feel and how other people feel.

Handle your fears: Fear can have one of two effects: 1) It can paralyze you, if you imagine all that can go wrong if you leave your familiar ground, or 2) it can spur you into action if you fear that things will get worse if you don’t do something. The second fear is productive and healthy.

• In the story: Haw feared not finding new cheese if he ventured out into new areas of the maze. But he also realized he definitely wouldn’t find any by staying put. He asked himself, “What would you do if you weren’t...

...

Learn to enjoy change — it can offer rewards such as greater income, new relationships, or greater job satisfaction from using more of your talents. Finally, expect and prepare for continuous change by always growing and learning in your personal and professional life.

The moral of the cheese story is that the end of the old can also be the beginning of something better.