Have You Found Your Cheese?
A two-part book discussion
on organizational change
within the education
community.
Why even talk about change?
Things change, whether it is planned or not.
(Usually not!) How we adapt to change determines
our future success (or failure).
Resistance to change leads to stress and
bitterness.
Developing a “Why Change?” statement helps all
stakeholders reflect on areas of weakness, and
addresses future needs. This collaboration gives
everyone a piece of ownership in the organization.
What does cheese have to do
with all of this?
Spencer Johnson’s best-selling
book, “Who Moved My Cheese?”
uses a simple parable to
address how accepting and
preparing for change can impact
your outlook on life.
“Cheese” is what we are looking
for in life, personally and
professionally.
Change is change, right?
According to Johnson, there are actually three
stages of change:
– Preparing for Change
• Gives people ideas for success.
– Gaining Change Skills
• Gives people a chance to learn skills in order to help them
adapt easier.
– Achieving a Change
• Aids people to work together as a team to achieve
measurable success.
But I don’t have time for cheese…
“Who Moved My Cheese?”
is a mere 94 pages (with
large type!) It can be read in
an hour or so.
The “mice vs. men” story is
a basic, but powerful,
parallel to the “rat race”
many of us experience.
For our next meeting…
Please read the book as you think about the following:
– What is your cheese?
– Which character do you most identify with?
– Do you see parallels between the story and your life? Your
school environment?
– When was the last time change (or the idea of it) caused you
some anxiety?
– Why do you think people are of afraid of change?
These are a few things we’ll discuss next time.
Happy reading!
Welcome Back!
What did you think?
What connections were you
able to make with the story?
What are some change
scenarios that cause anxiety in
a school?
What causes this anxiety?
Who are you?
Which character do you most identify with?
– Sniff, able to determine when change is on its way…
Who are you?
– Scurry, who runs out and seeks change head-on…
Who are you?
– Haw, who is initially resistant to change, but realizes it’s
not so bad…
Who are you?
– Or Hem, who is resistant to change, regardless of the
situation?
Thank you!
It was ‘gouda’ of you to participate!
For more, visit
www.whomovedmycheese.com