Rating: Summary: GREAT INSIGHTS! Review: I loved this book, Dr. Johnson's story of the mice and their search for the cheese is a heartwarming adventure told as an analogy for our lives. When one of the characters asks "What would I do if I wasn't afraid", it dawned on me how much of what I fear is made up by me, an illusion, and not reality. It seems that I get used to what I am used to, no matter how uncomfortable or unrewarding my situation might be. Sometimes we just need people like the good Dr. Johnson to show us what is so simple; in fact so simple that we have overlooked it. I recommend this book whole heartedly.Another book I love is called "WORKING ON YOURSELF DOESN'T WORK" by Ariel and Shya Kane. What a great title! And so true. Like "Who Moved My Cheese" it is an easy to read book with so many simple yet profound insights into our lives. It's a fun read and it too will help you find the cheese. Enjoy! ps The Kanes have some great audio tapes as well, i.e. The Principles of Transformation.
Rating: Summary: I took the bait and I'm glad Review: I bought this book because of its phenomenal success. I wanted to know, What's the deal, here? Surprisingly, I got a lot out of this little parable and overlooked the price. I was able to see how my own fear of change keeps me stuck, having less (emotionally and experientially) than I would if I would embrace change and new adventures. When I got to the question, "What would you do if you weren't afraid?" an answer popped into my head that astounded me. I had not thought of this goal as "cheese," in my life, nor was I aware of my deep fear. At different times, I've sought different cheese: relationship, career success, money, a house. New cheese awaits. ~Joan Mazza, author of DREAM BACK YOUR LIFE and DREAMING YOUR REAL SELF
Rating: Summary: Simplistic nonsense Review: This book is, by far, the worst management book I've ever encountered (even worse than the One Minute Manager). In fact, to call it a book is a stretch. It is more akin to a long pamphlet. I can't believe I actually read the whole thing ( even though it on only took about 20 minutes). It did prove one point ... come up with a catchy title and you can sell just about anything. And yes ... to all those who see the deeper meaning in this novelette ... I DID get the point.
Rating: Summary: If you're reading this book you should be job hunting. Review: If you've been given this book by someone at work it means that something bad is about to happen there. This book is set up to attempt to make you quiet and complacent. The book is arranged in three parts: an introduction which informs you that nearly everyone likes this book. You learn that if you don't like this book it probably means that you're afraid of change, stubborn, a know-it-all, and not likely to weather whatever impending storm your boss has in mind. So, having been conditioned to accept and like the book, you move into its main body which is a story about mice and people in a maze. When the maze changes the mice don't think much, don't question anything, they just adapt. The people think. This causes grief for the people. They don't think TOO hard though. Neither ever thinks "why am I in this maze in the first place and could I try to get out?" or "where is this cheese coming from and why?" They think only about the maze and the cheese in it. The third part of the book is a summation of what you have learned so far, using some old friends at a highschool reunion as examples. Those who think too much or do not adapt instantaneously and quietly end up badly (for example being fired!) Those who behave like mice live happily ever after. Beware of this book.
Rating: Summary: Disappointment Review: This book has been on the bestseller lists for so long that I finally gave in and read it. I like self-help/motivational books. But this one is pablum. It is so utterly lacking in substance that I marvel at how it has sold so well for so long. My cynical self suspects some padding of sales figures. There are two mice (Scurry and Sniff) and two little people (Hem and Haw) and the book deals with their reactions when they find that the cheese they are used to has gone. Actually the two mice might as well be one character since no particular effort is made to distinguish between them. They hunt for and find a new cheese source together. The little people first rail against fate and then Hem pulls himself together and sets out to find a new cheese source while Haw remains at the old place waiting for the cheese to reappear. The underlying "lesson" is that change is inevitable and the sooner we accept it and move on, the better we will be. This is communicated in a series of pithy sayings in big print in the middle of a slice of cheese. "The quicker you let go of old cheese, the sooner you find new cheese" is a typical example. There is a passing reference to visualization in one of the sayings - "Imagining myself enjoying new cheese even before I find it, leads me to it." This is not explained further. Books like Shakti Gawain's "Creative Visualization" and Sanaya Roman's "Creating Money" are much better at explaining the underlying principles...
Rating: Summary: Don't look for much insight Review: Change happens. Change is accelerating. Deal with it. It doesn't get any deeper than that. No doubt "Cheese" has become a bestseller as a propaganda tool, (training aid?), for stimulating and executing change. Anyone so out of touch that they've missed the increasing depth and pace of change probably needs this kick in the pants. Anyone looking for insight and guidance out of this odd parable will have to look elsewhere.
Rating: Summary: "Cheese" does for change what "Reject Me" does for rejection Review: "Who Moved My Cheese" was a powerful parable that helps one take care of the fear of change in the same way John Fuhrman's book "REJECT ME - I LOVE IT!" does for overcoming the fear of rejection. While "REJECT ME" is non fiction, they both teach lessons about taking control of our fears and turning them into positive power. Since Johnson's book takes one sitting to complete, his message can change the way you look at change. One sitting is a small investment to take charge of your life.
Rating: Summary: I no longer fear change Review: I have been through 2 site closures in 15 years. Now, last Tuesday the company that I have worked for for 14 months announced we have been bought by Motorola. This time I was able to recognize the writing on the wall and am anticipating another site closure. After reading this wonderful book, twice, I can accept change. My future holds a new adventure of looking for "New Cheese". Thank you Dr. Spencer Johnson for helping me to face what I use to dread. CHANGE.
Rating: Summary: A Satirical metaphor about Life. Review: Witty, engaging, funny world of "mice and men" too. Comparable to the "Dilbert comic strip" escapades about the corporate workplace, this book could be aimed at those who fear or resist change in anything; relationships, health or in the workplace. Seen through the actions of four beings- mice- in a maze- wanting their cheese and willing to do whatever it takes to get it. The fun begins. The imagery is clear. Read it and laugh, but I caution you, the arrow of this parable may just hit its target with you. It is a satirical,farcical,comical, ludicrious, enjoyable metaphor about life.
Rating: Summary: Cute, but not Earthshattering Review: This book is a cute way of reminding us that we need to be proactive in dealing with change in our lives-- to read the writing on the wall and prepare ourselves to go out and search for fresh cheese. It's a cute parable, takes only a few minutes to read, but doesn't tell you anything you don't already know if you've ever worked in corporate America.
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