Who Moved My Cheese? by Dr. Spencer Johnson
Book Review by Andy Pan
Date of Review: 6th June 2007

This book serves as a powerful revelation and if not a gentle reminder that changes are part and parcel of life. By using a simple parable, which revolves around 4 interesting characters, Dr. Spencer Johnson has given several revelations, with regards to the changes that we face in FOCUS and even to the approach and debrief of Key Punch.

Basically, the book starts with a high school reunion, where a particular person began telling a story about 4 characters called Sniff, Scurry, Hem and Haw. Sniff and Scurry are actually mice and Hem and Haw are Littlepeople. These 4 characters all lived in a Maze, running through it to look for Cheese to make them happy. In this book, Cheese can be anything that we pursue to bring happiness to our lives, be it material wealth, healthy relationships or a stable job. However, as the story continues, these characters discovered what they were looking for when, one day, they found a huge supply of Cheese in a corner of the Maze. After a while, the Littlepeople got contended with their supply of Cheese and became a tad too comfortable with it. They felt that they had deserved their Cheese but soon, confidence grew into an arrogance of success.

On the other hand, Sniff and Scurry continued their routine of sniffing and scurrying, always arriving early in the mornings to inspect the Cheese to see if there had been any changes. They were often alert to what was happening to and around their Cheese. Then one day, the Cheese disappeared. Sniff and Scurry were not surprised, since they had noticed that the supply of Cheese has been diminishing by a little portion everyday, but Hem and Haw were in a state of denial and disbelief. The later responses and reactions of these 2 pairs of characters would then show the reader what we are so guilty of sometimes. The fact that, every so often, we do get sucked into a state of contention and start to take the fruits of our labour for granted.
           
Thus,   

1) We should anticipate change
2) Then, adapt to change quickly
3) Afterwards, enjoy the change
4) But most importantly, be ready to change quickly, again and again

I think the point for us is that we should never let our guard down at all times. Changes are happening everyday and if we do not anticipate these changes, the only ones who will lose out eventually will be ourselves. In these competitive times, I guess if we do not move first in our expansion into Asia, we would stagnate and everyone would be disadvantaged. We must be able to see the long-term future of FOCUS from a strategic point of view and act fast before things change. Let us gain the first-mover advantage and stamp our mark in this region, because if we allow the fear of venturing overseas to engulf us, then the company would never expand. I guess the fact is that our cheese has been slowly diminishing. The industry is getting packed with players and making our pie ever smaller. We must anticipate this before our competitors and make the competition irrelevant, but still be able to be ready to change quickly again if the need arises.