From 'fear' to 'fun': Managing workplace FOMO

There’s a “condition” that many of us experience in life – or have been prone to feel at times. The term it has been given is FOMO – “fear of missing out’. While many may have already heard the term, one could argue it’s becoming accelerated throughout society – not least by technology and social media.

For younger generations, it’s becoming an increasing problem. Contributing, in part, to mental health issues that already exist – anxiety, stress, perfectionism, worthiness, and esteem. However, while a societal problem in and of itself, like most problems, there’s always the aspect of transference. And workplaces are one of those areas it bleeds into.

Trying to identify and manage FOMO can be challenging for managers. Already, millennials are prone to traits like overachieving, reward orientation, and perfectionism and despite having the best intentions, are unable to say no – which leads to overcommitting and anxiety when workloads are out of whack. Trying to draw out the “what” and “where” FOMO comes in, isn’t always straightforward. However, there are some clues. Overwhelm, indecision, and procrastination can all act as red flags. Overwhelm because of the number of options available, indecision for fear of making the wrong decision and procrastination in both their decision and the action, because of lack of confidence.

Because of the complexity and in some parts, the fact that FOMO isn’t going away, psychologists have come up with a counter term. JOMO, the “joy of missing out”, is considered an antidote where the “fear” is essentially replaced with “fun”. It’s a concept that looks at both the present (i.e. enjoying what you’re doing in the moment without worrying what everyone else is doing) and the future (i.e. saying no to things because of being committed to a greater goal).

As a millennial, I’m prone to the odd feeling of guilt, usually when I have to say no or set boundaries because whatever it is (i.e., the distraction) isn’t moving me ahead toward my goals or isn’t a priority in the moment. So, when I first read about the term, my immediate thought was, “This is brilliant, I have a legitimate reason”. And with the sudden “acceptability” of missing out, it brought relief.

Now for managers, introducing (and selling) this concept I believe has the potential to make a huge difference to both the attitudes and behaviours of employees who struggle with FOMO. Think, more ease in workflow and effectiveness, timely decision making, increased confidence, enhanced focus on the bigger picture, and less stress.

So where to start? Three simple tips.

Awareness. Have a conversation with your teams. Identify FOMO and JOMO as “things”.
Permission. Encourage teams to embrace saying no. Focus on the benefits of “missing out”. Celebrate that saying “no” can be a good thing.
Acceptance. Normalise the concepts. FOMO is always going to be there, but JOMO can make it all that much easier to manage.

At end of the day, we’re always missing out on something. It’s the perspective we adopt, that makes all the difference. And for managers, understanding and implementing the principles of JOMO in managing teams can be of huge value.