Cover Image: Out of the Maze

Out of the Maze

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Member Reviews

Thanks to Ebury Publishing and Netgalley for the Advanced Reading Copy.

We use “Who Moved my Cheese” as a resource when running Managing Change workshops so it was great to be able to get a copy of the sequel to see how it could enhance the message of the first book.

This book follows a similar format to the first, it tells a short story about characters who are faced with uncertainty and change and the different ways they choose to deal with it. This book continues to explore the themes of fear, denial and resistance to change in more depth but also delves deeper into investigating themes around resilience and how our beliefs impact our ability to cope with adversity. Although some of the messages may seem simplistic, when you genuinely reflect upon them and challenge your own thinking, they ring true. A large part of dealing with Change and Resilience is thinking critically about the impact our beliefs have and being able to challenge those beliefs in order to move forward.

As with the first book there are a lot of themes easy to pick out for implementing in a workshop session. The message is quick and simple to understand and there is a lot of scope for discussion. I would recommend this to anyone working in the area of employee development or anyone undergoing a period of change.

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A lovely way to add closure to who moved the cheese. Starting with a group discussing the previous book and the impact on each of their lives- one person said that he was confused as to what happened to Hem. This is the real beginning of a beautiful approach to how we condition our lives by our beliefs and the fact that not only is change a difficult thing but also looking into our own beliefs and being prepared to change them as well is often even harder.
A well planned story with cute pictures to highlight the issues that affect both Hem and Hope.

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This is a motivating and insightful book disguising lifestyle advice as if it was a story for children. It would make an excellent starter for many workplace courses. The advice it dispenses on lifestyles is superbly disguised.

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A business fable and follow-up to a legendary "Who moved my cheese?". Many thanks to the publisher and NetGalley for sharing the ARC.

I see what the author is trying to do here and why he is delivering the message using the fable as a format. But personally, while I agree with the premises and conclusions - I did not enjoy the delivery style. It felt a little patronising for my liking - hence 3* rating.

Having said that, if you enjoyed "Who moved my cheese?" - chances are you will enjoy the sequel as well.

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A self help book about the importance of realising the power of a beliefs held. Certainly gave me a positive experience and I would think a great help to anyone who is having any doubts about themselves, situations or confused in the fast paced world we live in. It’s a short easily read and understood book, set within a seminar, from which a story is told, There’s also a letter written by Spencer Johnson, at the end of the book, that I found quite inspirational. He must have been a wonderful man. I would recommend this book it, especially to anyone who wants to dig their way out of the hole that they find themselves in, this may be a good spade. It won’t give you the answer but it may help you to see things differently so you can get the answer for yourself.

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Thank you to NetGalley and Ebury Digital for giving me the opportunity to read OUT OF THE MAZE..
I haven't read WHO MOVED MY CHEESE, but I understand OUT OF THE MAZE is an add-on to that book. It was an easy fast read, only 100 pages. I thought the fable was sweet and would appeal more to children. The ideas on the pages are not new but told in an easily understandable way.

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I first read the prequel to this book Who Moved My Cheese over 15 years ago and found it very helpful. Fortunately I listened to man audio version of Who Moved My Cheese just a few weeks ago.
Out of the Maze written by the late Spencer Johnson follows on and is a very quick read.
My honest opinion is that I think it would be most helpful as an addition to an edition of Who Moved My Cheese rather than a separate book whilst understanding the reasons behind it being separate.
I think the value of Out of the Maze is gained best after reading Who Moved My Cheese and not as a standalone.
The reference to Spencer Johnson's life and the way he dealt with his latter months of life serves a very strong testimony and sums up the message of Out of the Maze.

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Very sorry to say that I have no idea what all the fuss is about over this book. If common sense is so lacking in the population that a book such as this is really necessary, I fear for mankind.

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Being totally honest I wasn't entirely certain how I'd ended up getting this book, felt an obligation to read it, but was certainly not looking forward to it.
I can now say I was absolutely wrong in my belief that it would be a dry, dusty, and unsatisfying book that I had to slog through, it was in fact the exact opposite .It was amusing, clever and witty with great insight delivered in an entertaining way. Quite an ironic discovery considering the story itself.
I would recommend this to anyone, it reminded me of one of Aesop's fables, a brilliant short story that makes a great point. I have definitely learned from it and it left me smiling. Read it, you won't be sorry you did.

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Thanks to NetGalley and to Ebury Digital for providing me an ARC copy of this book that I freely chose to review.
Although Who Moved My Cheese? was published a long time ago (in 1998) and I had seen it around, I only learned more about it when I was working on the translation of a self-help book. The author referred to Johnson’s fable in his text and I had to check it out. When I saw this sequel announced on NetGalley I felt curious.
Most of you will be familiar with the first book, but in short, it is the fable of two mice and two little people who live in a maze and feed on cheese that magically appears every day. Suddenly, after things have been like this for a long time, the cheese disappears. The two mice go as well, seemingly looking for more cheese, but the two little people don’t agree on what to do. One of them decides to try to find more cheese, while the other stays put, convinced that things will go back to the way they were soon enough. As is the case with all good fables, lessons are learned.
In this book, the central fable is framed by a discussion group. The class has been talking about the original book, and one of the students asks what happen to the character left behind. The teacher then comes back with a story, which is the follow-up to the previous one, but this time the protagonist is Hem, the character left behind. Throughout the book he meets hope, has to confront his set of beliefs, and learns invaluable lessons.
Like the previous one, this book is really short, under 100 pages, and that includes a note from one of the author’s collaborators and some background to this work. The author died from pancreatic cancer in 2017, and the story of how he handled his disease (including a letter he wrote to his cancer) is also an important part of the book.
The book, like its predecessor, does not provide brand-new ideas or earth-shattering insights. Having said that, the lessons become easier to remember because they are provided in the format of a fable. Having the distance and the perspective afforded by reading about imaginary characters in an imaginary situation allows people to think about their own lives and find similarities in outlook that might not be welcome if pointed out directly or if our behaviour is confronted head-on. Realising something for oneself is much more effective and causes less resistance than having somebody tell us where we went wrong.
The discussion group and its members also provide some examples of real-life situations and how to deal with them.
In sum, this is a short book, written in simple language, easy to read, and it can be useful to people who feel stuck in a rut and cannot see a way forward. It would also provide useful and easy read to course facilitators looking into topics such as belief-systems and how to change one’s perspective.

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I loved the first book and apply this to life at work and at home. I did quite enjoy this second book and the ideas were interesting. Not as impactful as the first book however it is a easy and quick read.

Thank you to NetGalley and publisher for the opportunity to review the book.

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Hmmm… Having never read the first book, I did at first wonder if this was only going to appeal to returning audiences. But I don't think it matters in the end – but I still don't think this is a classic. The framing device hammers morals down (and drops into religion, at the worst moment), and the actual 'story' itself is not hugely brilliant. It's a self-help book designed to show how you can change your ideas, break out of comfort zones (either of being or thinking) and discover new possibilities, which are what you need when change has happened and the Plan A of stopping dead in your tracks really does seem to favour the 'dead' part of things. Oh, and how having hope (or, indeed, Hope), is a help. It's not completely facile, even if it does occur in a weird fantasy maze realm, but it's not brilliant. At times the whole book is either being too wishy-washy or too tub-thumping, but then again, seldom do these books hit the right balance. Or so I believe...

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I really loved Who Moved My Cheese so was excited to hear of this follow on book, however this one felt a little more like it was force feeding the message, rather than letting the reader come to their own conclusions. I still enjoyed it and got something out of it, just not as much as with the first book.

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An essential add-on allegory and metaphorical story to Who Moved My Cheese?

Honestly, the story is not that interesting but the framework it provides for helping you get out of the maze of your mind provides the steps for a philosophical jump many need to make.

I found myself repeating the principles that Haw worked out, and applying them to situations I desired to change.

I wish this had been around ten years ago.

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