Who Moved My Cheese?

October 15, 2012
Authors: Spencer Johnson, Kenneth Blanchard
Publisher: Vermilion
Year: 1998
ISBN: 9780091883768
Rating: ★★½☆☆
Read book reviews from other readers
 

After my 45-year-old aunt’s appetite for personality development got seemingly satiated by this 98 page piece of very popular cheese, and in her euphoria that followed, she bought my dad a copy which somehow ended up with me. One fact that all readers irrespective of their disposition towards this book must chime in with is, the miraculous manner in which the story is told makes conspicuous all those obvious yet indiscernible flaws of human personality in its responses to environmental stimuli.

This book is all about enhancing adaptability and attaining the ability to take advantage of change rather than being victimized by it. If you are afraid of change and if your rankling rigidity overpowers you, this book is just for you as it provides essential energy to fling away all your fears.

The book starts with a high-school reunion where Michael narrates the main story to his schoolmates gathered there. The story is about two mice, Sniff and Scurry, and two miniature men, Hem and Haw. These four characters live in a maze. Cheese is what all of them want and they find it. As days pass, someone moves the cheese; and one day, all of it disappears. The way in which each of these characters reacts to this and what can be learnt from each of them is for the reader to unveil for himself. In present day’s corporate culture with existing managerial complexities, this book might serve well in ameliorating the situations in falling firms and collapsing companies. This book is a renovating resource and is recommended for all managers and employees working in corporate organizations.

As the narration completes, there is a discussion among the schoolmates about the story. In this discussion, the author cleverly uses conscious self-deprecation to carefully shield his book from some anticipated assaults. The way in which these schoolmates, who are also author’s characters, admire the story and praise the story’s amazing applicability appears vaunted and might at times vex the reader.

Readers of this book might either ardently love it or coldly consider it to be a redundant explanation of an elementary aspect, adaptability. So you might find it either extremely insightful or obvious and annoying. If my review inspires you to grab a copy of this book and if you find it highly helpful, I am truly happy for you, but if after reading the book you think your time has been wasted, let me make it up to you by suggesting a different yet related book. Written by Deepak Malhotra of Harvard Business School, the book is titled I Moved Your Cheese.

Lakshmikanth Koundinya

Lakshmikanth Koundinya

Writer at IndiaBookStore
Of Poe's heart, Russell's brain, Wilde's thought and Rand's strength - a hedonic wanderer and enchantress' apprentice in the world of Literature
Lakshmikanth Koundinya

Latest posts by Lakshmikanth Koundinya (see all)

No Comments

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *