Articles
FOMO
I’m a little slow in the category of social media, so I had to look up the acronym FOMO. Chances are, even if you don’t know the acronym, you’ve experienced FOMO. What is it? According to one source, it is what keeps you checking your phone 96 times per day on average: Facebook, texts, news outlets … we have a Fear Of Missing Out – FOMO.
“When it feels like everyone is always on social media, we feel like we can’t log off either. What if we miss something important? The fear of missing out is not unique to the social internet. (It) just activates the fear much more frequently than life off-line does. We fear not being informed. We fear invisibility …
“For so many, to engage on social media is to exist. Many of us need to be acknowledged by other people (through likes, comments, shares, etc.) in order to be reminded of our own existence. Likewise, we feel the need to be present online in order not to miss out on what our friends and family members are doing. Unfortunately, we become so obsessed with not missing out on what is happening online that we miss out on what is happening off-line” (Chris Martin, Terms of Service 35-36).
We’ve all seen it: families at restaurants all on their phones; drivers on their phones; brethren in worship on their phones (and not on their Bible app, either). Most have done it, but most will deny they have a problem with it. Don’t let a fantasy world, a false reality, steal your precious minutes and hours. Live a real life; engage with your family, friends and brethren in face to face conversation; pray; study your Bible. That’s not missing out; it’s truly living.
