What is FOMO, its Psychological Impact, and How to Overcome It All

KOMPAS.com – Ever heard of the term FOMO? FOMO is mostly experienced by the younger generation and is described as a feeling of not wanting to miss the latest trends. How psychology explain it?

FOMO stands for Fear of Missing Out or what can be interpreted as a fear of missing the moment. FOMO is used to define the feeling or perception that other people feel pleasure and have a better experience with them. This triggers someone to do the same.

This is getting worse in the younger generation because the younger generation is very close to social media, such as Instagram and Facebook. They feel they have to follow certain trends so as not to be said to be out of date.

FOMO Impact

Reported from Psychology Today, FOMO produces a negative impact. Research conducted at Carlton and McGill University shows that FOMO is associated with negative emotions and stress. In fact, researchers believe that people who have FOMO often lack sleep and tire easily.

In addition, other articles published in Computers and Human Behavior found that people who experience FOMO have low levels of satisfaction with their lives. This also relates to the use of smartphones and social media. The higher it is use of social media and smartphones, the lower a person’s satisfaction with his life will be.

FOMO also has the potential to cause various unhealthy behaviors. For example, such as not focusing when driving, and so on. If it happened, it would be dangerous for someone’s life. You need to know that the impact of FOMO can not only attack young people, but also all ages.

Read also: Color Psychology, from Mood to Marketing Strategy

How to deal with FOMO

There are several ways you can do to reduce FOMO so that you have a better quality of life. Here’s how to get around FOMO.

1. Change your focus

When people experience FOMO, people tend to focus on what they don’t have or don’t do. Try to focus on what you have. To support it, you have the control to change your social media to be more positive. This is related to the high influence of social media on your mental state.

How to do it is quite easy. You just need to follow more people whose posts are useful and positive. Don’t forget to reduce or limit access to accounts that you think trigger a lot of FOMO to appear or have a bad influence on you.

2. Journalize

Nowadays, social media is often used as a kind of online journal. But this intention often shifts to the need for other people’s validation of what you are doing.

Keeping a conventional offline journal using a book or an application on your personal phone will be very beneficial for you. You will be more appreciative and grateful for what you do in life without the need for approval from others. This will also indirectly reduce your dependence on social media.

3. Make a real connection

Instead of looking for lots of unreal online connections to support yourself, try to find real connections with the people around you. A real connection will directly support you if you are feeling sad, depressionor emergency.

More than that, you can plan useful activities or social activities with your closest friends. This will help a lot to reduce FOMO and make you more grateful for your life.

FOMO is a condition mental which could attack anyone, but this was a controllable condition. You have complete control over your perception of what is happening around you. So, do you want to continue to experience FOMO or do you want to live a more peaceful life?

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