Organizational Leadership and Management
<Title of the academic institution>
The book “Who moved my cheese?” by Spencer Johnson, despite its international fame and common recognition, appears to be quite humble and simple. An average reader can cover all 96 pages of this book within an hour. Nevertheless this is one of the most prominent works about transformational leadership and delivers the intended message in the most popular and understandable form. The extended title “An amazing way to deal with change in your work and in your life” summarizes the main topic - the change, the context – professional and personal activities as well as the method of assessing them all together.
The plot of the main part is simple and linear. Four characters are introduced – two mice named Sniff and Scurry and two little men – Hem and Haw. Each of them has his own unique traits of personality. Sniff is capable of smelling cheese at a distance while Scurry is able to perform swift and decisive actions. Hem is a conservator who values stability, Haw, on the other hand, is willing to use his intellect in order to change behavioral patterns upon necessity. All four characters are being placed in a maze with random deposits of cheese, which appears to be the highest value for all four creatures. While the mice prefer to search for cheese by means of trial and error and rely on their natural instincts, the people prefer to use their analytical skills. The main story begins when the Cheese Room S, once discovered by all of them with plenty of cheese, becomes empty and they need to keep exploring the maze in order to get more cheese. The mice do not hesitate for a moment and start their quest that subsequently takes them to Cheese Room N which is full of delicious and new cheese. The people, however, tend to be anchored to the old room, although there is no more food left there. While Hem sticks to the old place with persistence beyond reason and common sense, Haw tries to discover the new cheese and therefore restore the stability he once enjoyed. After some tiresome search he comes up with certain philosophical ideas concerning cheese finding process and ultimately succeeds.
The image of cheese is used in the book as a metaphor of wealth and success in a broader meaning, and the philosophical findings of Haw may be successfully applied to the real situations. Now let’s assess each of those ideas and analyze them in respective theoretical and practical context.
Statement 1: Having cheese makes you happy (Johnson, 1998, p.26).
It is in human nature to strive for stability, freedom and sustainability. Both in terms of logic and instincts people tend to look for a position, both personal and professional, which would provide a feeling of satisfaction, ability to satisfy their needs and make plans for the future. The nature of such position, or equilibrium, does not appear to be so obvious and easily achievable.
Statement 2: The more important your cheese is to you the more you want to hold on to it (Johnson, 1998, p.33).
This is also true. A well-paid prestigious job provides financial independence and a high social status, and the more one gets from the present situation, the more he or she wants it to last forever.
Statement 3: If you do not change, you can become extinct (Johnson, 1998, p.36).
The environment, both in business and private life, tends to change on the permanent basis. Sometimes the transformations around an individual are so strong and important that one has to adjust to them in order to keep his or her grasp on reality and avoid becoming inefficient.
Statement 4: What would you do if you weren’t afraid (Johnson, 1998, p.42)?
The necessity of change may bring a person out of his or her comfort zone, which may be stressful. In order to see the new horizons and aims one has to get out of the shell of self-doubts and uncertainty and have a fresh look at the opportunities that life has in store for him or her.
Statement 5: Smell the cheese often so you know when it is getting old (Johnson, 1998, p.45).
If your horse is dead, it’s time to get off it and keep moving. If the existing model of business or personal relations does not satisfy a person and is getting inefficient, it’s time to move one. For doing so, one should keep an eye on the current situation so as to detect the moment of the required transformation.
Statement 6: When you move beyond your fear, you feel free (Johnson, 1998, p.51).
When an individual is not afraid of trying new ways and has enough courage to overcome own anxiety, he or she may see plenty of new opportunities and feel own ability to face them.
Statement 7: Imagining myself enjoying new cheese even before I find it, leads me to it (Johnson, 1998, p.53).
Proper motivation is extremely important for success. The ability to determine the desired outcome and feel its significance and availability contributes to the overall performance quality.
Statement 8: The quicker you let go of old cheese, the sooner you will find new cheese (Johnson, 1998, p.57).
The pictures of the past, no matter how tempting they may seem, have nothing to do with the transforming reality. There is no guarantee of fast or easy success, yet it cannot be achieved at all in case if one sticks to the obsolete things and is not accepting the new order.
Statement 9: It is safer to search in the maze than remain in a cheeseless situation (Johnson, 1998, p.59).
The work that hasn’t started lasts forever. There is no gain in the present useless situation, however there is always a chance to improve things by keeping looking for solutions.
Statement 10: Old beliefs do not lead you to new cheese (Johnson, 1998).
In order to gain something new, one normally has to learn something new.
Statement 11: When you see that you can find and enjoy new cheese, you change course (Johnson, 1998, p.62).
It is very important to detect the emerging opportunities and react to them respectively.
Statement 12: Noticing small changes early helps you adapt to the bigger changes that are to come (Johnson, 1998, p.66).
Early information or even an intuitive feeling may be quite useful in detection of new trends and capturing value from them.
Statement 13: Move with the cheese and enjoy it (Johnson, 1998, p.68)!
The process of personal and professional development in search for the new value in life is by itself quite interesting and fascinating, therefore one should enjoy every single moment of it.
All these statements, if understood properly, are crucial for the contemporary leadership patterns, especially transformational leadership. These concepts should be realized by all the employees of a successful enterprise, from bottom staff to the executive board. This is an obligation of the management to spread the word throughout the entire organization, supervise the implementation of these rules and adhere to them themselves. This book with its simple, yet deep wisdom provides an excellent personal and professional pattern to follow.
References
Johnson, S.(1998). Who Moved My Cheese? An Amazing Way to Deal with Change in Your Work and in Your Life. Putnam Adult.
