by Dr. Cecil Clements (10th April 2012)
I am not sure how many of you got a chance to read a little book that came out in 1998 called ‘Who Moved My Cheese?’ by Spenser Johnson. When it came out at that time, it was vying with large news events like Bill Clinton and Monica Lewinsky, so it didn’t get the publicity that it would have otherwise got. But a year later, its sales jumped to 1 million. Since that time, it has sold over 22 million copies and has been on the Wall Street Journal business bestseller list for more than 13 years. 22 million is a phenomenal number, even more than ‘Built to Last’ and ‘Search for Excellence’, books that have been very much a part of the management scene. It’s a small book; about 95-96 pages and has a very simplistic story, almost a parable that the author uses. While many people have used it and have got great value from it, there are a few who have said that it is very simplistic in the way it has been written.
When asked about this, the author himself said, “I agree. Sometimes it’s the simple things that will change us. a simple memorable approach is sometimes the most valuable.” Spencer Johnson wrote many other books as well, though he is not a MBA or a corporate veteran. He teamed up with Ken Blanchard and wrote ‘One Minute Manager’ which is another bestselling book. But sometimes, simplistic solutions are all that are necessary for complex problems.
I remember reading somewhere, and I’m afraid I can’t authenticate it but it makes the point, that Einstein was once working on something very important. He had 2 cats in his house, one big and the other small. He would shut the door to work and they would come and scratch the door from outside because they wanted to get in. finally he turned round and told his servant, “Why don’t you get a carpenter and make 2 holes in my wall, a big hole and a small hole so that they can come in.” The servant looked at him and smiled saying, “Sir, I think if we just made one big hole, both cats could come in.” Einstein realized what he had said. Sometimes even the most complex minds miss the simple solutions.
So I just want to offer some of the nuggets available through this book to you. I’m going to read some stuff that I got as a synopsis from Wikipedia. The book is about 4 characters: ‘Sniff’ and ‘Scurry’ who are 2 mice and ‘Hem’ and ‘Haw’ 2 humans. They are looking for cheese, which is representative of happiness and success. Initially without the cheese, each group, the mice and the humans, paired off and travelled the lengthy corridors searching for cheese. One day, both groups happen upon a cheese-filled corridor and ‘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 that the cheese supply was dwindling, they have mentally prepared beforehand for the arduous but inevitable task of finding more cheese. So leaving tjis Cheese Station, they begin their hunt for new cheese together. Later that day, Hem and Haw, the humans, arrive at Cheese Station C only to find the same thing – no cheese. Angered and annoyed, Hem demands, “Who moved my cheese?” The humans had counted on the cheese supply being 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 and both go home starved. Returning the next day, Hem and Haw find the same cheese-less place. Starting to realize the situation at hand, Haw thinks of searching for new cheese. But Hem is dead-set in his victimized mindset and nixes the proposal.
Meanwhile, Sniff and Scurry, the 2 mice, have found another Cheese Station where there is new cheese. But back at Cheese Station C, Hem and Haw are affected by their lack of cheese and blame each other for their problem. Hoping to change, Haw again proposes a search for new cheese. However, Hem is comforted by his old routine and is frightened of the unknown. He knocks the idea again.
After a while of being in denial, the humans remain without cheese. One day, having discovered his debilitating fears, Haw begins to chuckle at the situation and stops taking himself so seriously. Realizing he should simply move on, Haw enters the maze, but not before chiseling on the wall – ‘If You Do Not Change, You Can Become Extinct.’
Still fearful of his trek, Haw jots, “What would you do if you weren’t afraid?’ on the wall. After thinking about that, he begins his adventure. Still plagued with worry (perhaps he has waited too long to begin his search) Haw finds some bits of cheese that nourishes him and hi is able to continue his search. Haw realizes that the cheese has not suddenly vanished, but has dwindled from continued eating. After a stop at an empty cheese station, Haw begins worrying about the unknown again. Brushing aside his fears, Haw’s new mindset allows him to again enjoy life. He has even begun to smile again. He is realizing that when you move beyond your fear, you feel free. After another empty cheese station, he decides to go back for Hem with the few bits of new cheese he has managed to find. But uncompromising Hem refuses the new cheese, to his friend’s disappointment. And Haw heads back into the maze. Going deeper into the maze, inspired by the bits of new cheese here and there, he finally finds a place where there is a lot of new cheese. At the end of this story, he writes on the wall, a couple of things which would capture your imagination. He says this:
I am not sure how many of you got a chance to read a little book that came out in 1998 called ‘Who Moved My Cheese?’ by Spenser Johnson. When it came out at that time, it was vying with large news events like Bill Clinton and Monica Lewinsky, so it didn’t get the publicity that it would have otherwise got. But a year later, its sales jumped to 1 million. Since that time, it has sold over 22 million copies and has been on the Wall Street Journal business bestseller list for more than 13 years. 22 million is a phenomenal number, even more than ‘Built to Last’ and ‘Search for Excellence’, books that have been very much a part of the management scene. It’s a small book; about 95-96 pages and has a very simplistic story, almost a parable that the author uses. While many people have used it and have got great value from it, there are a few who have said that it is very simplistic in the way it has been written.
When asked about this, the author himself said, “I agree. Sometimes it’s the simple things that will change us. a simple memorable approach is sometimes the most valuable.” Spencer Johnson wrote many other books as well, though he is not a MBA or a corporate veteran. He teamed up with Ken Blanchard and wrote ‘One Minute Manager’ which is another bestselling book. But sometimes, simplistic solutions are all that are necessary for complex problems.
I remember reading somewhere, and I’m afraid I can’t authenticate it but it makes the point, that Einstein was once working on something very important. He had 2 cats in his house, one big and the other small. He would shut the door to work and they would come and scratch the door from outside because they wanted to get in. finally he turned round and told his servant, “Why don’t you get a carpenter and make 2 holes in my wall, a big hole and a small hole so that they can come in.” The servant looked at him and smiled saying, “Sir, I think if we just made one big hole, both cats could come in.” Einstein realized what he had said. Sometimes even the most complex minds miss the simple solutions.
So I just want to offer some of the nuggets available through this book to you. I’m going to read some stuff that I got as a synopsis from Wikipedia. The book is about 4 characters: ‘Sniff’ and ‘Scurry’ who are 2 mice and ‘Hem’ and ‘Haw’ 2 humans. They are looking for cheese, which is representative of happiness and success. Initially without the cheese, each group, the mice and the humans, paired off and travelled the lengthy corridors searching for cheese. One day, both groups happen upon a cheese-filled corridor and ‘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 that the cheese supply was dwindling, they have mentally prepared beforehand for the arduous but inevitable task of finding more cheese. So leaving tjis Cheese Station, they begin their hunt for new cheese together. Later that day, Hem and Haw, the humans, arrive at Cheese Station C only to find the same thing – no cheese. Angered and annoyed, Hem demands, “Who moved my cheese?” The humans had counted on the cheese supply being 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 and both go home starved. Returning the next day, Hem and Haw find the same cheese-less place. Starting to realize the situation at hand, Haw thinks of searching for new cheese. But Hem is dead-set in his victimized mindset and nixes the proposal.
Meanwhile, Sniff and Scurry, the 2 mice, have found another Cheese Station where there is new cheese. But back at Cheese Station C, Hem and Haw are affected by their lack of cheese and blame each other for their problem. Hoping to change, Haw again proposes a search for new cheese. However, Hem is comforted by his old routine and is frightened of the unknown. He knocks the idea again.
After a while of being in denial, the humans remain without cheese. One day, having discovered his debilitating fears, Haw begins to chuckle at the situation and stops taking himself so seriously. Realizing he should simply move on, Haw enters the maze, but not before chiseling on the wall – ‘If You Do Not Change, You Can Become Extinct.’
Still fearful of his trek, Haw jots, “What would you do if you weren’t afraid?’ on the wall. After thinking about that, he begins his adventure. Still plagued with worry (perhaps he has waited too long to begin his search) Haw finds some bits of cheese that nourishes him and hi is able to continue his search. Haw realizes that the cheese has not suddenly vanished, but has dwindled from continued eating. After a stop at an empty cheese station, Haw begins worrying about the unknown again. Brushing aside his fears, Haw’s new mindset allows him to again enjoy life. He has even begun to smile again. He is realizing that when you move beyond your fear, you feel free. After another empty cheese station, he decides to go back for Hem with the few bits of new cheese he has managed to find. But uncompromising Hem refuses the new cheese, to his friend’s disappointment. And Haw heads back into the maze. Going deeper into the maze, inspired by the bits of new cheese here and there, he finally finds a place where there is a lot of new cheese. At the end of this story, he writes on the wall, a couple of things which would capture your imagination. He says this:
- 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 – 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 – they keep moving the cheese.
Well, that in essence, is the book ‘Who Moved my Cheese?’ But as you listen to it, you can pick out a couple of important points from it. Three points that come to mind are these:
- When we find something that works for us, we often settle. We think that we’ve reached and now we get into routine habits, procedures; we don’t do things in new ways, we don’t ask questions, we don’t anticipate problems. We just settle.
- When faced with a crisis situation, we often waste valuable time blaming other people. If we find that the cheese has moved, instead of saying, “Let’s move ahead,” we start looking around to find fault with people who could be responsible for it and we waste valuable time.
- Heading into the unknown often produces fear. That is the characteristic of the unknown. But the key is to be able to overcome that fear and move on. Somebody once said, “The only constant in our world today is change.”
The question for you and me this morning is – are we coping with change? Or are we just stuck, sitting there and saying, “I am not going to move now. I fear the unknown. i am going to see who is responsible for this.” Are we going to attack or make the changes that we ought to make?
It’s interesting that in our Bible, God says to us ‘Fear not’ 365 times – almost a ‘fear not’ for every day, inviting us to move confidently. A verse in the Bible (Matthew 28:20)that I love says, “I am with you always, even to the end.” That gives me great motivation, great courage and assurance to be able to handle changes that come my way. I pray the same for each one of you on this call.
God Bless You All.
It’s interesting that in our Bible, God says to us ‘Fear not’ 365 times – almost a ‘fear not’ for every day, inviting us to move confidently. A verse in the Bible (Matthew 28:20)that I love says, “I am with you always, even to the end.” That gives me great motivation, great courage and assurance to be able to handle changes that come my way. I pray the same for each one of you on this call.
God Bless You All.
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