Before you skip over this book review, consider it carefully. The process of change has challenged human beings as far back as literature records. The struggles human beings have as the world around them changes is in the news every day. There are dozens of articles and books about the change process, mostly written from the point of view of the changer. In other words, how do you as a leader get other people to change? Very little is written for the person who is in the midst of change and their own individual struggle in the process.
Spencer has studied how individuals respond to change in organizations in great detail. He talks about the concept of transition as being distinct from the process of change. He explains that change is the stuff that happens to you, while transformation is how you react to the stuff. His understanding of the deep and significant nature of this internal process has led him to writing several books on the subject of transformation and conducting regular workshops for corporations and in at least one case, a museum in the midst of change.
To sum up the literature on change, little of it is about the individual who is experiencing the change. And, most of it is more intellectual and theoretical with models and workshops and principles and guidelines for change. In other wrods, a bit abstract.
Who Moved My Cheese is written from the point of view of the person experiencing the change. The principles on which the book is built are timeless and of extraordinary significance to individuals personal success in life-work life as well as home lilfe.
Too often, the change process focuses on elaborate theory, models, resources, systems, workshops, etc. This book presents, in 90 pages and large font type a half a dozen basic truths about change. It presents very complex truths simply; yet it is not a simple book. In my informal surveys only a fraction of one percent of the readers of non-fiction books read them from cover to cover—especially management books. This is one of those books that actually gets read from cover to cover. The language is simple, straight forward, clear, with no pretension.
The big danger here is that those of you with college degrees, especially a graduate degree, are likely to be dismissive of a 90-page book that talks about cheese and mice. How could you take it seriously. Of course, many fairy tales and myths contain some of the most powerful truths about human life. These are sophisticated and powerful truths told simply. Spencer Johnson has done this in his book—Who Moved My Cheese. I urge you to take this book seriously. I urge you to think of sharing it with your people and your frenz.I think it’s worth while.