What is JOMO and why do I want it?
Posted on April 08, 2023 by Cat Laiacone, One of Thousands of Career Coaches on Noomii.
Have you heard of JOMO? It is similar to FOMO (Fear of Missing Out) - except it means the Joy of missing out!
We know life can be stressful, hurried, and feeling like there is never enough time to…
Get the project done at work
Workout or exercise daily
Eat well with healthy foods
Time for family
Time for friends
Time to get your nails done and sit in a salon for a while.
I heard someone say that it can actually be more joyful to slow down and “miss out” on the newest trend, that one event to attend, that if you do, you know you will be exhausted for the next day.
When we take the time to take stock or inventory of our time, and how we choose to spend it.
It’s easy to get caught up in routines and patterns. We do things automatically and our brain is built that way because it defaults to the familiar. What you did before, your brain knows and wants to do again, but going to the unknown? That needs to be intentional to really make a difference.
Try making a list of 10-15 things you do a day. No need to include your daily needs, such as bathing, dressing, and brushing your teeth. You can put things on the list like, stop for coffee at the coffee shop, go the cafeteria for lunch, take the same route to and from work every day and calling your mom at 10:00 a.m. for a daily check in.
As you write those things down, think about your enjoyment level – or the “joy” you receive when doing it. Maybe that cup of coffee in the morning, is a treat to yourself and that you really enjoy. Great, that’s something that is serving you and bringing you joy. But, if stopping in the morning, adds stress to your day because of the time it can take to go through the drive through, because it’s costing about $60 a month for that coffee, and you could easily make a cup of coffee at home for the ride in and instead use the $60 for a nice pedicure or a new piece of clothing that would bring more joy.
Only you can decide what would work best for your life and make a few tweaks in your routines to improve them. Just changing one or two things in your routine can be just the right positive outcomes that encourage you to try something else new or different.
When we make our brain pause and actually think about what we are doing and why, it helps us live with intention. We “know” what we are doing and how it is serving us. Kind of like, I have to go to work because it pays my bills, i.e. rent, mortgage and food. However, if you need money to pay bills, you can still get income from another job or career should the one you have now is not serving you or helping you progress and grow the way you want to.
So, when you find yourself a bit overwhelmed with everything on your “to do” list, maybe it’s time to revaluate what is on your list, what really needs to be done and what routines or habits tend to just fill up your day when you are not closely paying attention.
The good news is just as we inherited and acknowledge these routines, they all began with repeating behaviors, that then took on as habits. So if you begin some new simple routines, in a short amount of time, that will be your new routine and replace the old one that wasn’t serving you.
We are the only ones that have the power to change our choices we make and how we live our lives.
Go enjoy some JOMO!
