My friends and I often comment on the plague of Fear of Missing Out or "FOMO." I was introduced to this term by my friend Zoe Strimpel when I first moved to London, and I was shocked how an acronym so succinctly captured why I have such a frenetic pace. I realize that I've suffered from this affliction for most of my life. I think it's partly generational, as so many young working professionals that I know also suffer from the condition (or perhaps I have self selected fellow victims). FOMO is what causes you to feel like the grass is always greener, somewhere.
However, this week, I discovered an inspirational post by Caterina Fake, the founder of Flickr, the photo sharing site, proposing a cure. As an impressive role model, Caterina is often asked about who inspires her. She answers that her inspiration comes more from creations rather than people. Her cure for FOMO? Make things. Love what you're making. Be excited about what you're producing.
Her encouragement to "make things" really resonated with me, as the advice is so simple. She's not saying make the next iPhone or the next ____. Just make something. Her advice echoes sentiment I once got from a life coach, "Anytime you get caught up in your head thinking, just do something. Anything. Take an action, or get a coffee, or go for a walk. Just do something."
Admittedly, Caterina's exhortation to make something is probably on a grander scale than the purchase of a latte from the nearest PAUL, given that she a) founded Flickr and b) includes such nominal achievements such as Amazon or eBay in her examples of inspiration. That said, it's interesting advice even if we bring it down a few levels. So next time FOMO strikes you, or you feel decision anxiety about the evening/ month/ year ahead of you, try it. Make something and see if the focused energy helps clear the way forward. And if you don't feel you can make anything, see where the thought process or brainstorming gets you. At least you'll have made a list.