Internet ecosystem has introduced us to several new terms that are part of the techie lingo. One such term that we all feel fascinated by is FOMO – fear of missing out.
In fact, none of us are bereft of this fear of missing out on the information that’s being bombarded on us every minute at lightning pace. If you open your FB account after a few minutes, you will come across numerous new posts, reels, stories and if you try to search any post that you had seen a few minutes ago, chances are you may not find it! Ditto WhatsApp, Instagram, LinkedIn , SMS and your email. And not to mention, continuous beeping of our mobile phones with news alerts and other messages from the subscribed apps and websites. And very few of us read newspapers today in detail and just skim through headlines or main items, as most of the news appearing in the morning newspapers had already reached us on real time basis.
How does one consume so much information and more importantly retain and use it?
I myself sometimes get disturbed at not being updated enough on several news items and current affairs. Little I realised that by knowing everything happening under the sky, I might not have lost anything unless I was participating in a quiz programme or appearing for an IAS exam, till this realisation dawned upon me only after I came across another term JOMO – Joy of missing out, an antithesis of FOMO.
Indeed, let’s rejoice in missing out on the fare dished out on social media, internet and other sources of information around us. Things that are in reality important for us will in any case reach us.
Of course, working professionals may follow JOMO at the peril of missing out on important issue, in the form of a message on WhatsApp or an email, earning their boss’s wrath in the process.
Arvind Arya blog 