FOMO

 FOMO, or fear of missing out is relatively a new concept but is getting popular because of awareness among people and is not just a term that describes social anxiety. It actually is a constant fear, inside the mind of a person, of missing something which could bring some better opportunities or experiences in an individual's life. It is a very common phenomenon and can create problems like stress, anxiety and fear in the mind of an individual. This term was coined by a marketing strategist Dr. Dan Herman while relating to consumer behavior.

What is FOMO?

In this ever-growing era, where one can see what others are doing, creates a pressure on the mind of an individual to do the same thing and if it’s not done then, arises the fear of missing out. Fear of missing out is mainly the fear or anxiety of missing out on anything that brings betterment in life according to one’s own perspective. FOMO is mainly concentrated among the young population aged between 16-35. FOMO is very common nowadays and almost everyone of us must have gone through it at some point of time in life. People have become very competitive and they are ready to do anything to become the best. Everyone forgets that they can’t be on the same footing and get dissatisfied with their lives due to high expectations. Growth of FOMO is directly related to the increase in use of social media. It may have been heard - “Let’s do that, everyone is doing it”.  People do things as they see others doing it, not for the sake of doing it for themselves which shows us the growth of FOMO in general. High levels of FOMO are related to low levels of psychological satisfaction. FOMO is not much dependent on the age but, it actually is dependent on the usage of social media networks. Social media has created some standards for everything, even for happiness. There is so much peer pressure that, if someone gets out their real emotion, either they are asked to behave or they just become inspiration like what is wrong with us? Why can’t we just think for a second and behave rationally by normalizing these things and not creating hype about it.

What are the effects of FOMO?

It can bring psychological and behavioral changes in an individual which can range from stress, anxiety, depression and loneliness. It is normal human tendency to compare things and their own life with others which we think is healthy for our development and growth. Actually, it makes things worse for people as standards are set high on social media which basically highlights positive and good exposures on social media. In turn, if somebody fails to match those standards, FOMO starts paving its way. It may give rise to low self-esteem and unnecessary fatigue, headaches, stress, anxiety and procrastination. An individual can also feel a lack of social connections and try to boost up social connections even if they don’t feel like doing it. In this digital era, it gives rise to negative habits like increased screen time, being busy on the phone while being around other people, increased usage of drugs or alcohol and disturbed sleep cycles.

Ways to overcome fear of missing out

In this fast-moving life, we need to slow down and focus on our real life instead of life in front of cell phones and cameras. It is necessary to figure out our needs instead of focusing merely on our desires as they are endless. Just don’t get ready to do anything and start saying ‘NO’ to those things you don’t like or want to perform. Focus on a better experience and quality of that experience instead of focusing on quantity. It will provide you with more time for the activity which you actually love and admire. Start appreciating what you got instead of crying for what you don’t have. Activities like meditation and yoga will increase awareness about surroundings and feeling of calm. One thing which can be life changing is to accept ourselves as we are instead of changing for others or societal norms but, even in this process truthfulness to self is necessary. If all this is not helping you, one can also go and see a therapist, it is very normal and there is nothing wrong with you. If you are feeling the fear of missing out, please reach out to your loved ones and try focusing on the activities and suggestions.

Conclusively, it must be admitted that FOMO is growing more than ever and bringing harmful effects on the life and health of people. Self-awareness is important but we need campaigns to make people more aware about this concept and it may seem ordinary but the effects of it are extraordinary. 

By Gavish CHAUDHARY

Content Writer

Social Journal

Volunteering

Why and when do individuals add to the government assistance of others? For what reason do such countless individuals decide to help other people by giving their cash, time or labor supply and numerous others don’t? For such countless individuals chipping in may be a misuse of important time and for some others it very well may be the best experience ever… what makes the experience remarkable?

Chipping in takes you, most importantly, away from your usual range of familiarity and offers you a chance to address new difficulties, individuals with various ways of life, and associations with alternate points of view and encounters. Hence this will empower moving toward difficulties likewise from various points.

Volunteerism and local area inclusion have been exhibited to offer advantages both to networks and to volunteers themselves. Nonetheless, few out of every odd technique to energize these ways of behaving is similarly viable in delivering committed volunteers. Drawing on applicable hypothetical and exact written works, we recognize elements of endeavors that are probably going to create characteristically inspired other-situated volunteers and those that might deliver outwardly roused self-arranged volunteers. Specifically, we investigate ways of mingling youngsters to help and ways of building a feeling of local area zeroed in on specific issues. We additionally look at necessities for local area administration and different methodologies that feature self-arranged benefits that volunteers might acquire. At last, we return to an emphasis on the significance of characteristic inspiration for advancing supported contribution in volunteers, even as we recognize that volunteers who accompany extraneous or self-situated reasons can in any case offer a lot to networks and can be fulfilled when their exercises match their inspirations.

“To volunteer” is to represent the advantage of others without an actual commitment to do as such. “To be a worker” is to readily commit your time and assets to a reason, an individual, or a gathering. The demonstration of chipping in is one of the essential articulations of humane way of behaving, through which people adjust their inclinations to those of their particular networks and together help with accomplishing advantageous social advancement. By chipping in people exhibit their association in the public arena, their independence, and simultaneously – their bug-like harmony.

For a gathering to make due: fortitude, union and solidarity are requirements. Volunteerism is a Petri dish for each of the three. By chipping in you express your qualities, the upsides of your local area, and unwittingly you better the whole world. Human way of behaving is infectious, and being a transporter of unselfishness than a transporter of selfishness is better. At the point when an individual focuses on volunteerism, others will observe until it turns into the guideline locally. At the point when a local area focuses on volunteerism, others will keep until it turns into the guideline on the planet. This is the butterfly-impact of the human way of behaving. Everybody can take part in a deliberate action and contribute , by potential outcomes and the time that they have. Particularly youngsters who frequently utilize their spare energy with different exercises and don’t turn out to be essential for chipping in, without realizing that this movement might serve from here on out.

Humanitarian effort is a demonstration or activity of a gathering of people coordinated, to improve and reduce different issues that a given local area might have.

 

By: Sakshi Saini

Content Writer

Social Journal