The term fear of missing out or FOMO is thrown around a lot and you most likely heard of
it. It’s actually a real phenomenon that can cause you stress. FOMO can affect just
about anyone so this video will go over what it is, how to recognize it, how it causes
you problems, why you make poor choices when you have FOMO, and some tips on how to avoid
it. Although the feeling that you are missing
out on something has been around for centuries, it wasn’t until modern times when the term
fear of missing out was coined. FOMO refers to a feeling that you are missing out on something
and that other people are experiencing something better than what you are currenting experiencing.
When you have FOMO, you have an urge to be connected to what other people are doing and
compare yourself with them. You can experience a fear of missing out in multiple situations
ranging from a party or a promotion or the stock market doing well. The feeling of missing
out and how much you are comparing yourself to others is how you can recognize you have
FOMO. A fear of missing out causes 2 main problems.
First off, your life satisfaction or your happiness is lowered when you have FOMO. Since
you are constantly comparing yourself to others, you will feel that you haven’t done much
with your life and feel down. Something interesting is that according to research, social media
is a cause and effect of FOMO. People that use social media often have a higher chance
of experiencing FOMO but FOMO also is a mechanism that can lead that person to use social media
more. This leads to a negative loop where you keep comparing yourself and feel that
you are missing out. Second, a fear of missing out causes you to make poor choices that might
not align with who you are or choices that can hurt you. A common scenario where FOMO
does major damage that happens to a lot of people is investing in the stock market. Whenever
the stock market does really well, a lot of people experience a fear of missing out on
riding the gains so they start investing based on their feelings. They most likely didn’t
do their research and they might have invested at a bad time. Worse case scenario, they will
lose money. A common scenario where FOMO causes you to make a bad choice that doesn’t align
with who you are is when you have to decide which event to attend. We all have times where
we have the choice to go to many different events. If you start experiencing FOMO in
those situations, you will choose the choice where most people are going and the event
you think most people will be having fun at. Once you go there, you might realize that
you chose the wrong option since it doesn’t align with who you are and you are not having
fun. So why do people make poor choices when they
have FOMO? Well the feeling of fear causes people to do interesting things. When you
are afraid, you often make irrational choices even when you know what you should be doing.
When you have FOMO, you are also able to be manipulated easily by those around you. Every
little word or action can push you to make that bad choice. There’s a reason why some
ads and marketing campaigns employ a sense of FOMO to get people to buy products. It’s
really effective to get people to buy more products so you should be aware of it.
Now, how can you minimize feelings of FOMO? The following tips can help.
1. Change your focus from what you lack to what you have. When you have FOMO and you
compare yourself to others, you mainly focus on what other people have that you don’t
have. If your focus is on what you lack then it’s hard to be happy. Focus on what you
do have and practice some gratitude so you won’t be controlled by FOMO.
2. Find out what is really necessary and important to you. By finding out what is most important
to you, you can say no to choices that you know are not necessary. If you know what is
most important, you won’t be swayed into a bad choice by FOMO that easily. This also
helps you say no to things that you don’t want to do. Trying to do everything is a sign
that FOMO is controlling you. Remember that more isn’t always better.
3. Make some connections and friends. If you find yourself getting FOMO from spending too
much time on social media, go make some friends and meet up with them in person. Making some
plans with them can help shake off that feeling that you are missing out on something. Doing
something social with people can also be a nice change of pace for you. You will be in
the center of the action after all. 4. Practice mindfulness. If you often watch
my videos, you might find that practicing mindfulness is like a solution for everything.
Being mindful can help you deal with FOMO as well. If the fear of missing out is lowering
your happiness, you can increase your happiness by being more mindful. Mindfulness can help
those that have FOMO enjoy what they are doing in the moment instead of wishing for something
else. Have you ever experienced a fear of missing
out? Leave a comment below and check out the video shown on the end screen if you want
to learn how to declutter your mind and stop overthinking.