Do you remember being a small child and being told to go to bed when all of the adults and maybe you’re older siblings were still up? You were tired but were desperate not to miss anything, so would protest and pretend that you were wide awake to get those extra minutes of up time?
What if I told you that this FOMO, could be still impacting your actions?
Over the last 2 days I attended the #5050 tech event. A shortlisted elite group of women owned start ups pitched their ideas to venture capitalists and big wigs in the business and tech world included Martha Lane Fox founder Doteveryone and Stephen Kelly CEO of Sage UK. One of the start ups Festibl actually mentioned FOMO in their pitch, which led to me think about the individuals I know, who for FOMO:
- Take on clients, business, jobs they don’t want
- Do not niche or specialise
- Avoid decision making
- Are a slave to their emails
It doesn’t help that the advice from successful business people and gurus suggests that you:
- Take every opportunity
- Say yes
- Go for it
- Just do it
But ask yourself does FOMO help you run your business or life successfully? I think not, as decisions based on fear are rarely the right ones.
So here are my tops 3 tips to combat FOMO and start making decisions from a better place.
- Be Picky. You must be willing to Say No This will provide you with more time to devote to those experiences that are more deeply rewarding. Remember: More isn’t necessarily better. Focus on the kinds of things that enhance the quality not the quantity of your experiences.
- Separate Your Needs from Your Wants. Prioritising certain activities will enable you to let go of others. Decide what your highest priorities are and focus on them.
- One thing at a time. Even if those around you are multitasking, you don’t have to. When you try to apply yourself to too many tasks at a time, it often isn’t as successful. When you are focused on a single task, and give your full attention to it, not only you more likely to be successful in producing a high quality result, but your level of satisfaction while performing the task is much higher.
