Interpersonal Theories - Book Report/Review Example

Interpersonal Theories I decided to focus on a motivational book for this report. The book ‘Did You Move my Cheese?’ is not just another self-help book. It uses the story of four characters to try and identify the human needs and desires. There are various themes that are prevalent in the book such as hard work, change and perseverance, they form the basis of our basic human needs and affect each of our daily lives. The main themes are factors that are part of everyone’s life (Johnson 23). The pursuit of happiness is a key role in the book. The cheese that is mentioned in the book is a metaphor that refers to what can make us happy. Be it a good job, a lot of money or good health. It’s the pursuit of these items that leads to happiness. The maze represents the environment in which we pursue our goals. All the characters in the book had ambitions, something they looked forward to. They all wanted to get the cheese as this would bring fulfillment in their lives. Hard work is also represented in the book. It shows that only those people who are willing to go out and chase their dreams actually get satisfaction at the end. It makes no sense to simply sit and expect our dreams to materialize. Perseverance is also essential to all human successes. Nothing comes at an instant; we have to go out of our way to work hard in order to achieve success. However, despite the hard work, nothing comes fast. We have to wait in the long term to be able to see the fruits of our labor and to be rewarded as expected. Last and foremost, the self-help book discusses how change is inevitable in life. We should be ready to change with the times and when it happens, we should accept it as part of life. It should also be important to enjoy changes as much as we can, while we can. These themes are prevalent in the book and represent factors affecting the society. This book is a symbol that nothing remains the same and that it all begins with us as individuals. It also highlights the importance of interpersonal communication in life and the important role it plays in ensuring we live happily. ‘Who moved my Cheese’ Summary The book begins with a group of old friends who are sharing what is going on in their lives. It is from this talk that the story of the cheese begins. The story revolves around the life of four characters, two mice and two little people. The two mice are known as Sniff and Scurry while the little people are Hem and haw. The book resolves around how they react to the changes that occur in their lives. In the story, the four live in a maze and their goal is to locate the cheese. In this regard the humans and the mice went in pairs in different directions in search of the cheese. One day, all of them stumble on a corridor filled with cheese marked as cheese station c. On this discovery, the little humans, Hem and Haw settle down and established a familiar daily routine. Their routine allows them to be more relaxed and they become content. With time, the two mice return to the corridor and find that the cheese supply is over. Given their keenness, they are not surprised. It had come to their observation that the cheese was rapidly depleting. They had therefore moved away from the corridor and already embarked on the search for more cheese. They were prepared mentally for the impending search and therefore moved off together to look for more. As the day progresses, the little humans come to the corridor and find the cheese is over, they get angry and question who moved their cheese. They had become used to the cheese and were not in any way prepared for its absence. They have no option but to spend the day in hunger. It all seems so unfair to both of them. The very next day, they go back to the corridor only to realize that it was now a permanent situation. Haw realizes that this situation will not change and thinks of going to search for more cheese. At about that same time, the mice discovered a new station with cheese (station N.) meanwhile, the little people are hungry and blame each other for the loss of the cheese supply. Haw comes up and decides to explore in an effort to look for more cheese, but Ham is against it once more. He is not ready to try something new and untested and still hopes things will return to the way things were. They therefore become relaxed and live without cheese. However, Haw decides that staying around is foolish. He takes the first step and goes into the maze, while leaving a message on the wall that he thinks might motivate his friend to join the search. He wonders what he would do if he got rid of his fears, he also writes the same on the wall for his friend to read. Once in the maze, haw comes across some pieces of cheese and this gives him the motivation to go further in the maze. It dawns on him that the cheese supply did not disappear overnight but was gradually reducing. In the maze, he comes across an empty station and starts to grow fearful. He now realizes that he is pursuing something he feels happy about. There is a sense of contentment. He thus moves on and comes across another station which is also empty. Feeling motivated, he goes back to his friend Hem and takes with him some cheese for him to enjoy. However, Hem refuses to partake of the cheese brought around by his friend, Haw, who is motivated and moves back to the maze in search of more cheese. Occasional the discovery of bits of the cheese motivate him to move further. Along the way, he writes on the wall with the hope that his mate will come across them and they can inspire him to continue the search. One day, Haw comes across a new station with plenty of cheese (Station N.) This comes across as what he has been s searching for all this while. After eating his fill, he thinks of his friend Hem and decides it would be in his own best interest to let Hem find his own way. Along the way, Ham leaves some writings on the walls that are motivational in nature so give as to give hope to his friend should he decide to start his own personal search for more ‘cheese.’ In station N, he writes the longest note when he writes about change in life, and the need to be prepared for what life has to offer. He concludes by saying that change should be embraced and seen as an adventure. Haw now settles at the new station, but from past experience, he does not become relaxed as before and thus spends time moving to different parts of the maze to ensure he does not get caught off guard once more. The story ends with Haw hearing some movement in the maze and he hopes it is his friend who has finally found his way to the new station. The book ends with the old classmates having a look at their lives and comparing it to the cheese narrative. They find that just as the characters in the book, they have been so busy focused on the way their lives were such that they could not readily accept certain changes. There are various aspects to interpersonal relationships that are brought about in the book (Cushman, Dudley 89). The aspects of interpersonal communication include: self-disclosure, use of various strategies such as the stages of interaction. In the book, we get to learn personal information about the characters. We get insight into the characters of the two mice and the two little beings. We can tell their desires and feelings towards certain changes. The relationship between ham and Hew also progresses through various stages. Initially, they were close companions. But differences in their ambitions led them to pursue different avenues. One decides to just sit and wait for a favorable outcome. The other decides to go out in pursuit of something better. He tries to persuade his friend to come along. But given his reluctance, he goes on by himself to try and fulfill his ambitions. Initially, the two friends had an interactive strategy. They talked on a constant basis in regards to the issue at hand with Haw trying to convince Hem to follow him in the quest for more cheese. This interactive approach did not however seem to work as he ended up venturing into the maze all by himself. This shows the importance of positive interpersonal communication where both parties engage effectively so as to accomplish certain goals. This story has a clear example of interpersonal communication between the characters; it is used to show the impact that communication has on people’s actions. Everything that we have learnt in class comes up when we read along to this book as it highlights the various situations, represented by the characters.it is a clear example of what we go through as humans and the importance of communication in all our endeavors. Works cited: Johnson, Spencer. Who Moved My Cheese?: An Amazing Way to Deal with Change in Your Work and in Your Life. London: Vermilion, 1998. Print. Cushman, Donald P, and Dudley D. Cahn. Communication in Interpersonal Relationships. Albany: State University of New York Press, 1985. Print Read More