Who Moved My Cheese

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Who Moved My Cheese

• Spencer Johnson MD

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Who Moved My Cheese

• The Book
• Part I Gathering of Friends
• Part II The Story
• Part III Discussion of the Story

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Who Moved My Cheese
A parable

• Three Prevalent Metaphors
• The Maze,
• The Four Characters, and
• The Cheese.

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Part I A Gathering

• Things dont necessarily turn out like we plan.
• Who likes to deal with change?
• What are some consequences if we dont change?
• Being open and honest about fear of change.
• Willingness to share information that would
  benefit others.

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Reactions to Transition
New Beginning
Endings
Excitement
Energy
Denial
Hope
Anger
Impatience
Fear
Shock
Acceptance
Frustration
Skepticism
Confusion
Creativity
Stress
Neutral Zone
Time
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Transition Curve
(external/environmental)
The Transition curve is a model for
understanding the normal progression individuals
and organizations go through as they
experience change. Different stages
require different management strategies
and interpersonal styles.
Commitment
Denial
Resistance
Exploration
(internal/self)
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Part II The Characters

• Mice
• Sniff
• Scurry

• Little People
• Hem
• Haw

What images come to mind based on the names of
the characters?
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Hem and HawThe expression

• Be hesitant and indecisive avoid committing
  oneself, as in When asked about their wedding
  date, she hemmed and hawed, or The President
  hemmed and hawed about new Cabinet appointments.
  This expression imitates the sounds of clearing
  one's throat. Late 1700s

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Part II The Story

• Cheese What we want to have in life
• Maze Where you spend your time looking for what
  you want

The one with the most toys wins!
Reflectionwhat do you want in life and where do
you spend your time looking for it
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Handwriting On The Wall
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Visualizing Cheese
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Happiness
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Differences In The Characters

• Mice
• Simplistic Thinkers
• Used Instincts
• Was Aware of Changes In Surrounding (Watchful)
• When The Environment Changed, They Changed With
  It.

• Little People
• Complex Thinkers
• Used Reason
• Ignorant to Changes In Surrounding (Familiar)
• Not Prepared For Change and Did Not Change With
  Environment.

Discussion Point What did each group do when
they came to Cheese Station C each day? As the
days went on?
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The Maze metaphor
What is the maze in your life?
What DidThe MazeRepresent?
Time?
Finances?
Family
Popularity?
Work?
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Alternate Life Centers
Security
Guidance
Wisdom
Power
Covey
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Handwriting On The Wall
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No Cheese?

• When the cheese was gone so were the mice!
• Reflect on the different reactions of the mice
  and the little people.
• Life is 10 what happens to you and 90 of how
  you react to it.
• When change happens is it as sudden as we think
  or are there clues?

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Getting Out Of A Cheese-less Situation

• Accept the situation this cheese is gone!
• Remember your journey you had to find cheese
  the last time and you did
• Reflect on your source there has always been
  cheese
• Block nay-sayers Folks with fear and negative
  thoughts who only want to HEM you in.
• Have faith you will find new cheese if you
  start to search on it
• Visualize success its the cheeseiest!

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The Journey Is A-Mazing!

• The journey is as important as the destination
• Youll go faster the sooner you get rid of old
  fears
• As you proceed, youll find morsels of the new
  cheese along the way a promise of what lies
  ahead!
• Everyone has to find new cheese for themselves
• Be supportive, leave a trail that can be followed

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Cheez-Whiz!

• You found new cheese!
• Now Chew on this
• Q What did the little people have that the mice
  didnt have?
• A The ability to reflect on the lessons learned
  and apply it for the next time as well as the
  opportunity to share it with others.

Lets Not Waste Our Lessons There Are People Who
Need To Hear Our Stories
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Part III A Discussion

• Change can be a positive thing
• As leaders we are to be flexible and adaptable
• No one admits they fear change but think everyone
  around them does denial.
• Old cheese is sometimes old behavior new cheese
  is a new or renewed relationship

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As Leaders How Do We Want To Handle Change?
Our community, students, and schools will be
looking at us and how we deal with change in
education. They will take their cues from us.
Community
Corporations
Students
US
Change is often prompted by unseen forces.
Think Back Has your cheese ever been moved?
Have you ever found new cheese?
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Lessons Learned by Haw

• The lessons Haw learned which we could use are
• 1. laugh at your own folly - then you can let
  go and quickly move on2. keep life simple
  (don't overanalyse or overcomplicate things)3.
  envision yourself (in realistic detail) finding
  something better4. learn from mistakes made in
  the past and learn to deal with change5. do not
  overcomplicate matters or confuse yourself with
  fearful beliefs6. notice when little changes
  began so that you would be better prepared for
  the big change that might be coming7. if you do
  not adapt in time, you might as well not adapt at
  all8. the biggest inhibitor to change lies
  within yourself and nothing gets better until
  you change9. there is always new cheese out
  there, whether you recognize it at the time or
  not, and you are rewarded with it when you go
  past your fear and enjoy the adventure10. some
  fear should be respected as it keep you out of
  real danger - most of our fears are often
  irrational and keeps us from changing when we
  need to11. change is often a blessing in
  disguise, as it leads us to finding better
  cheese.

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Curtain Call
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The End
No! Really, Its The Beginning!
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Epilogue
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What do you call cheese thats not yours?
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What do we mean when we say that Cheese has a
life of its own?
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Lets face it. Life is about change! No matter
how you Slice it, life is about Change.
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Where is your Cheese Station N ?