Published on oktober 23rd, 2014 | by thezooooo

Klassieker, maar waardevolle parabel: Who moved my cheese?

Mocht je met je bedrijf in transformatie zitten (en wie zit dat niet) of altijd waardevol aan het innoveren bent, dan is dit ook een waardevol filmpje of boekje om te laten zien aan je team.

Who Moved My Cheese? An Amazing Way to Deal with Change in Your Work and in Your Life, published on September 8, 1998, is a motivational tale by Spencer Johnson written in the style of a parable or business fable. The text describes change in one’s work and life, and four typical reactions to those changes by two mice and two “littlepeople”, during their hunt for cheese. A New York Times business hit upon release, Who Moved My Cheese? remained on the list for almost five years. It has sold more than 26 million copies worldwide in 37 languages and remains to be one of the best-selling business books.

The central message of this book is how to effectively and positively deal with change that brings happiness or even make you more competent for survival in this fast pace world.

The story which Dr Johnson narrated using fictitious characters seems quite real in today’s environment. The comparison of “real world” as “maze” and “what you want in life” as “cheese” are quite realistic and fit suitable for people across age, gender depending upon their situation. “Sniff”, “Scurry”, “Hem”, “Haw”, the four characters in the story has distinct characters and they deal with the world according to it.

“Sniff”, the mouse has great sense of smell often tries to find out the right direction before taking any action. Using its ability to know the proper direction it minimizes the risk of failure. “Scurry” has the ability to run faster and can cover more distance in less time. It moves ahead to find cheese without bothering much about direction as it can quickly follow another path in case of failure. The characterization of “Hem” “Haw” are typically like normal human being who has the ability to think, analyze and learn from past. In any situation they use their complex brain to comprehend the situation and act according to it. Hem denies and resists change as he fears uncertainty in life. He believes that the future will be…

Tags: changemanagment, creativity, culture