* There are four characters in Who Moved My Cheese? two of which are mice, Sniff and Scurry and two are little people, Hem and Haw. The two groups are in a maze and go searching for cheese one day and eventually come upon Cheese Station C. Hem and Haw become wasteful and arrogant and slowly deplete the abundant supply of cheese they once had. Sniff and Scurry predicted that this would happen and have mentally prepared themselves to search for more cheese. Meanwhile, Hem and Haw have become dependent on the cheese and are surprised when they go to Cheese Station C and there is no cheese left. Haw eventually proposed an idea to Hem that they should go search for a new supply of cheese. However, Hem feels victimized and does not want to search for the cheese (he is also scared of the unknown in the maze). While Hem and Haw debate back-and-forth Sniff and Scurry have adventured out and found Cheese Station N. Eventually, Hem and Haw are affected by their lack of cheese even becoming irrational searching behind the walls looking for cheese and begin to blame each other for their current debacle. * Haw soon overcomes his fear and enters the maze to his friend’s dismay. Before he leaves he writes on the wall “If you do not change, you can become extinct.” Haw then enters the maze and begins to find bites of cheese on the ground but soon realizes that he has waited so long that some of the cheese has gone bad. Haw finds an empty cheese station and realizes the cheese has not been disappearing but the stations are empty from continuous eating. Haw slowly begins to lose hope again but finds an optimistic outlook and gathers some cheese together he found and brings it to Hem. Surprisingly, Hem turns down Haw’s cheese and refuses to search for more cheese. Instead of Haw staying with Hem as he did in the past he ventures back into the maze in search of a new cheese station. Hoping that Hem will find him he writes “The handwriting on the wall” with the intention that Hem will read it and find inspiration in the quotes Haw left. After going through the maze Haw finally finds Cheese Station N and considers the idea of going back to find Hem and telling him what he found. Instead of going back Haw reflects on his experiences and leaves a series of quotes on the wall. * Who Moved My Cheese? is a symbolic story of the changes a business goes through and the changes the employees must undergo. The two mice Sniff and Scurry are the most prepared and anticipated the depletion of the cheese so found Cheese Station N first. I thought the cheese was symbolic of money or resources and Cheese Station N itself was symbolic of a new company or industry. The first quote was specific to business’s, if a company does not change with new innovations they will eventually lose money and become extinct. “Smell the cheese often so you know when it’s getting old” is most applicable to employees, as an employee change has to be anticipated so outsourcing or cost reduction does not eliminate their job by surprise. Employees can reduce their chance of being laid off by having a niche in the job market or understanding a concept that few do. * One of the easiest comparisons to this book is the revolt of Mubark in Egypt. Mubark ruled Egypt for almost three decades and was resistant to change and thought that the corruption would be tolerated forever. After the past few years of inflation, job loss, and increasing food prices the people of Egypt peacefully revolted took control of their government. If Mubark had “Monitored the change” and anticipated it he potentially could have stopped the revolt. I think the best attitude is to be like Sniff and Scurry. They had already assumed that the cheese would be consumed unsustainably and consequently were not surprised and prepared to find more food. The employee that anticipates changes before waiting for them to happen has a better chance of adapting himself/herself to the new market and being able to either keep his/her job or finding a new company to work for.