Who Moved My Cheese? An Amazing Way to Deal with change in your work and in your life, was such a catchy title. On the streets of Pune when I strolled down the lane these neatly arranged books on the footpath always attract me towards them.
I avoid buying any books from there(due to piracy), but that day I just picked this beauty and handed over the money (100 bucks) to the seller and ran home like a little girl hopping joyously with her lollipop.
That night itself I read it in one sitting (though the postures kept changing while I read). “Who Moved My Cheese?” moved me completely. I was proud that the decisions I made until then, were all worth it.
When I read the very first page, I kept making mental notes to write a blog on the book and share it with you. No matter what you are pursuing right now, each one of you must read this book.
Here are 20 quotes from Who Moved My Cheese for an effective change by Dr Spencer Johnson.
1. Having cheese makes you happy.
Here cheese is used as a metaphor for all the assets we want to have in life, like a job, a relationship, money, a big house, freedom, spiritual peace, health, recognition.
Each one’s idea of cheese can be different. And the reason for holding onto that cheese can vary from person to person.
This book tells us that, you are happy with the current cheese in hand but that does not stop you from moving on and grabbing the next cheese.
2. If you do not change, you can become extinct.
You’ve heard for a trillion time now that “Change is the only constant”, but do you think you’ve implemented it? Change and decision making goes hand in hand. If you need a change, decision making is the first step.
The most difficult part of decision making is taking it in the first place.
If not a change, you never know when you can become extinct. If not a change, things become monotonous and eventually, boredom creeps in.
3. Smell the cheese often so that you know when it is getting old.
If you don’t want yourself to keep asking this question of Who Moved My Cheese, then keep checking your cheese. Smell it to check whether it has rotten and that does it need change.
4. Movement in a new direction helps you find new cheese.
When there’s no spice in life, life seems to be empty. If you don’t want to experience this feeling of emptiness, pull up your socks and get ready for the cheese hunt.
Prepare your mind for a change. Don’t sit back and become comfortable in the old cheese.
5. When you stop being afraid, you feel good.
“Dar ke aage jeet hai”, a very famous phrase in Hindi used to advertise mountain dew motivatesus to take up risks sitting on the bed, while we are watching TV.
Same implies when it comes to taking risks in your life. Fear of losing keeps us away from taking risks. Once you overcome this fear life shall be good enough to take up challenges.
6. Imagining yourself enjoying the new cheese leads you to achieve it.
Change is not always for/because of something bad. Change can be for better also. Releasing yourself from the previous cheese is hard but the hopes of new cheese always have an upper hand.
If you start imagining that the new cheese will bring in new lessons, it’ll be much easier to move on leaving back the old ones.
7. Old beliefs do not lead you to new cheese.
No matter how dear and near is your current cheese to you, at some point in life it becomes mandatory to change and move towards a new hunt.
Unless you don’t think of change, it won’t happen. Give way to new beliefs and don’t let yourself stick to the same old cheese.
It’ll be difficult to adjust in the new cheese for a few days, but gradually you’ll settle and enjoy.
8. When you see that you can find and enjoy new cheese, you change course.
When you sit back on your chair and ponder on the cheese hunting process, you’ll find yourself evolved confident and regain your strength.
Put yourself in the process of changing and enjoy every bit of it.
9. Move with the cheese and enjoy it.
While you still have the cheese, go out and inspect for its validity. Don’t put yourself in such a situation where one day you’ll have no cheese left with you. Keep moving with the cheese and don’t forget to find newer cheese.
Dr Spencer summarizes his book in the below words :
Anticipate change
Adapt to change quickly
Enjoy change.
Be ready to change quickly again and again.
Hope you’ve got the gist behind the book, “Who Moved My Cheese?”
Do read it and get set go for a beautiful change in life. Let me know in the comment section below was the blog useful and whether you got a chance to read this tiny yet powerful book.
