New Year, New Cheese? Lessons from "who moved my cheese" for the New Year.

Professional success, health, finances, family, a romantic dream... Our cheese is whatever we want in life. It means different things for each one of us.

In addition, none of us need to have read "who moved my cheese" to realize that life changes and that our cheese can be moved away from us from time to time.

Sometimes, life brings unexpected challenges on our way. We may not notice them, stumble and fall. We may see them on time and choose to get hurt anyway. We may decide to change our route or use those challenges to push us farther. Whatever we do is entirely up to us. We, alone, are responsible for our happiness in life.

It is very common for people to come up with New Year's resolutions. The problem with these resolutions is that the beginning of a new year is the only time of the year some people stop to reflect on their own lives. This explains the loneliness and sadness that follow the holidays: People realize what they have made of their lives. Let's be realistic: we won't improve our lives if we don't reflect on it and act accordingly often.

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Be aware and Flexible. Be ready for change.

Introspectiveness is one essential key to happiness. Be still and take time to be with yourself alone from time to time. We should not face life recklessly. The first thing to recognize is: What is your cheese? What is it that you need or want? How do you need to structure your life to live thoroughly every day of the year?

Everything Changes

Whatever it is you need or already have can change. Being aware of the first signs of change helps us to plan further. If you notice your cheese is coming to an end, consider other options. Be flexible and do not overthink. If you overthink a situation, you may end up in a toxic chain of thoughts. Be prudent instead. If you are prudent, you may foresee the opportunities to act accordingly. Being prudent is not the same as rationalizing.

Do what you can do and notice the world around you

Be brave and move out of your comfort zone. Do not expect your cheese to show up all of a sudden until December.

Moreover, what are the people you admire doing regarding this same situation you are in? What can you learn from them? Recognize those who have the voice of wisdom and avoid negative people. We find rest when we have an open mind for good and a strong firewall for negativity.

It doesn't matter who is to blame

I was surprised to read on Goodreads how many people hated "who moved my cheese" because they think their cheese should not have been moved away.

It does not matter your boss gave you this book because he wants you to be flexible to whatever wrongdoing he has in mind. It does not matter how wrong you think any form of government is. I am sure Dr. Spencer Johnson had much more than this on his mind, and he was not implying whatever wrong whoever did to you was or is right. Moreover, he did not mean we must watch bad things happen and do nothing to change them. It is just the opposite. He advocates we must be proactive.

Please, allow me to get straight to the point because Spencer's idea is simple:

• We will get nowhere by complaining (to people or on social media).

• We will get nowhere by thinking we are entitled to something.

• We will get nowhere expecting things to happen if we don't move.

• We will get nowhere paralyzed by fear.

• We will get nowhere by blaming people for whatever happened to us, even if it is their fault (mainly because most of these people will not care).

• Things will only change for the better when we take responsibility for whatever is happening to us and do something to change it; it doesn't matter if it was our fault or somebody's else.

Even though we may have certain rights before an individual, we alone are responsible for moving forward whenever someone wrongs us. It does not mean evil won't affect us. It means we will do whatever we can to look for new cheese, to fight for whatever we believe is right, and reach the life we want for us. If all we do is complain, we will get nothing. The cheese will be gone, and it will never come back. Nobody cares if we were "entitled" to it. Therefore, whenever someone moves our cheese away, we need to act like they owe us nothing and be ready to move for our own sake.

We need strong roots if we want to see the fruits

When we plant a seed, it takes a while until we see the tree. In the same way, when we have the tree, it will take time to enjoy its fruits. While we wait for our tree to come out of the soil, we can strengthen our roots. And while we wait for it to bear fruits, we can fertilize it.

Our roots are the base of our plans. What do we need to work on in our lives to set us up for the life we want for us? Additional education? More water? More time with your family? What is it you need to work on to reach your dreams?

Be Patient

Fruits take time. However, even though we may not see the results right away, just to know we are working on our tree is motivational. It may not always be easy, but do not lose heart.

We may not find plenty on the way when looking for new cheese, but we will find enough to keep us going. Likewise, if we are flexible and proactive while aware of our environment, we will know the best steps to move on with our lives.

What Would You Do if You Weren't Afraid?

That is a powerful question. Fear slaves us. How many dreams die before they are even born?

Question your fear. What are you afraid about? Is it a lack of security? Criticism of other people? What can you do to feel safe while moving forward? Or what can you do to feel more confident?

Moreover, just asking "what would I do if I weren't afraid" invites us to dream about what we want most in our lives. That's a great motivation to leave any fear behind.

No book is unanimous

Although not all of us will enjoy the book "who moved my cheese," we can find some valuable simple life lessons here. 

May each one of us take time to reflect on our lives more often, not only in December or January next year. May 2022 be the year you will put on your running shoes and race toward your dreams without fear, like never before.

 Daily Epiphany wishes you a Happy New Year every time of the year.

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