Eliminating the Fear of Missing Out (FOMO)

Many are finding the quarantine a net gain for mental health.

Here’s why…

The FOMO has been eliminated. There is no longer a “fear of missing out”. For the first time in memory, that type of FEAR is gone. There are no events, no places to be, nowhere to go…everyone is in the same boat. Our worlds are simple. We are where we are. 

Our collective lifestyles will probably never be this similar again. We can all relate on some level. We have more in common than we did before. There is an uptick in unity. 

Our rivals aren’t getting ahead of us. Our heroes aren’t above us. Mick Jagger is at home just like you’re at home. The social totem pole has been deleted, and it seems quite good for collective morale. 

FOMO drives people into depression. There is absolutely nothing useful about FOMO. 

We have every option available to us at our fingertips; thus, the present is rarely good enough. It’s too easy to look at your phone (AKA pocket God) for “the cooler place to be.”

Why is that guy taking a crappy grainy video of the entire Rolling Stones concert? He has working eyeballs that see in hi-definition. He’s in the front row with amazing seats, yet watching Mick Jagger thru a 4-inch screen.

Why is he doing this? Not because he’s going to watch the video later, but because he wants to show the world he was there. 

On a basic level, there’s nothing inherently wrong with that. But when everyone on the planet is participating in the “hey look at me” culture, the traps of comparison run our lives. That guy’s friends and acquaintances are watching his Rolling Stones video and seeing it as a net loss for themselves. 

That grainy video is injecting more unnecessary FOMO into the culture. 

Everyone has witnessed forms of “Rolling Stones Guy”, and everyone has been “Rolling Stones Guy” at some point. The more time we spend online; the more we are absorbing FOMO and/or injecting it into the culture. 

So, before posting something on social media, it seems important to ask one question…

Is this post useful to people?

The present moment shouldn’t be the backup option. The present is a gift. Locking into the present is the feeling of true peace or leisure or therapy or some combination of these. 

What else can we do but be content with where we are? It’s an initial struggle, and then all-of-a-sudden it’s not. Feels good to chill. Surrender to nothingness. Embrace the sweet pleasure of sitting in a chair and reading a book. No one is doing anything better right now. 

We are all going back on the hamster wheel soon; working our 40-60 hour work weeks at full hyper-speed and climbing the corporate ladder or social ladder or both, but for now, life is slow, and the FOMO is an afterthought. Feels good, right? 

Let’s remember this time and reference it when we’re feeling wobbly. 

FOMO can be kept in check. FOMO can even be defeated. 

The present moment is therapy. We gotta enjoy the lack of FOMO before we are withering in the traps of comparison once again. 

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