A practical lesson on fear, inflation, and adaptation—through the wisdom of Who Moved My Cheese?

White cheese pieces scattered on a marble surface, symbolizing moving financial “cheese” and the need to adapt in changing markets.

The market feels terrifying right now, but what’s even scarier is standing still while everything around you changes.

The Market Looks Brutal Right Now

The Nasdaq has dropped close to 10% in just a few days, and the S&P 500 isn’t far behind.
Investors in leverage plays, speculative stocks, and crypto are taking the biggest hits.

In moments like this, the same question always comes up:

“Should I just sell everything?”

But that’s not actually the most important question.
The real question is this:

“When the market shifts, how should I respond?”

And this is exactly where the book Who Moved My Cheese? becomes incredibly relevant.

Yes, It’s Scary — But Cheese Was Never Meant to Stay Still

NVIDIA recently approached $200 and then fell sharply.
Someone who invested $15,000 might now be sitting at roughly $13,350.

Palantir dropped from $207 to around $150,
meaning a $15,000 investment is now closer to $11,150.

It feels like money disappears overnight.
And this is when most people react like Hem from the book.

“This isn’t right!”
“The cheese was supposed to stay here!”
“This shouldn’t be happening!”

But the truth is simple:
Markets move. Cheese moves. They always have.

The problem isn’t that the cheese moves.
The problem is when we refuse to move with it.

Your Paycheck (Your Cheese) Won’t Last Forever

In the book, the characters keep eating from the same cheese station every day—
until one morning, the cheese is simply gone.

Our relationship with our paycheck is very similar.

In the U.S., things change all the time:

Retirement
Layoffs
Voluntary Buyouts / Separations
Sudden job loss

The cheese station doesn’t stay full forever.
Yet most people act as if their current income will never change.

Which is why, while the paycheck is coming in, we must do one crucial thing:

Buy “golden goose” assets that will keep producing income even when we can’t.

Just like Haw in the book, we have to be willing to go look for new cheese.

The Bigger Danger Isn’t Volatility — It’s Inflation

Stock volatility is scary.
But the silent, more dangerous enemy is inflation — the invisible mouse nibbling away at your cheese.

A home that once cost $600,000
now goes for $1.2M to $1.5M.

And every part of daily life costs more:
burgers, coffee, childcare, self-storage, cars, insurance — nearly every living expense rises year after year.

Inflation quietly shrinks the size of your cheese pile.
Ignoring that reality is exactly what Hem did.

And Hem is the one who eventually starves.

What You Buy Isn’t the Point — Moving Is

Investing isn’t as complicated as it seems.

Sometimes you just have to think like Sniff and Scurry from the book:
stop overthinking, start moving.

You can choose:

NVIDIA
Palantir
Tesla
SPY
Bonds if you prefer stability
Dividend ETFs for cash flow

The specific choice matters far less than the behavior.

The key is building assets consistently while your paycheck still exists.

When cheese disappears, those who stay frozen lose every time.
Those who move, adapt, and explore new cheese stations survive — and thrive.

What We Must Do

Feeling scared when stocks drop is normal.
But standing still in fear is far more dangerous.

Cheese moves.
Paychecks change.
Markets shift.
Life evolves.

So the one job we have right now is this:

While you still have cheese, build the assets that will produce more cheese later.

This is how you protect your future self.
This is how you avoid becoming Hem.
This is how you eventually find your own “New Cheese Station N” —
full of opportunities that only appear when you’re willing to adapt.