16 Comments

I love the phrase JOMO, Sarah. Funny, true and clever. Nice awareness - most of the freedom, contentment and joy I’ve realized has come from doing the opposite of society. Curious what you’ll continue to discover on your path.

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Thank you for this. I'm desperately trying to escape from some obligations I volunteered for but wasn't sure were a good idea. Perhaps serving my time was a good thing to do, but now two years later this article has made me realise I need to say no more.

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I couldn't ask for a more satisfying comment, Chris. Sometimes, we need someone to permit us to do something. Bes with saying "no more."

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People will dive head first into situations that they know are bad idea just because of FOMO.

It's crazy.

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I hear you. FOMO is a formidable force that should not be taken lightly.

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I love that line "keep tapping your foot."

I have seen a white German Shepard. Her name was Shanti (peace).

And I had a shiba inu named Sukha (one vowel off from Suki)...which also means peace.

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It's a great line, isn't it? You instantly know what it means. That's so cool you've seen a white German Shepherd and had a Shiba Inu named Sukha (the opposite of dukkha). I really like Shiba's.

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of course you know what dukkha is…wow. and you love shibas. finding new things in common every day.

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Ha! Yes, commonality helps bridge the imaginary gap, doesn't it?

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I needed this one today. Thank you!

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Delighted to hear. Comments like this make it all worthwhile.

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Someone recent shared the term JOMO with me: the joy of missing out. I've been thinking a lot about being counter culture this week. In so many ways I've been trying to blend and make myself more palatable. Why though? Excited to see what blooms from this realization. Thank you for the work that you do, Ryan!

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Ryan, this is a great article. This is true that there are so many people that do things, because they think that others will find it cool. I was one of them. Always felt like it is a "thing" outside of me, that makes me cool, not myself. Later on I have realised that there are certain people who can make fly everything they touch. Then I have realised that it is the power of personality, that make things cool or not and decided to work on myself. Fomo happens because it is deeply engrained in our mind from a very young age. We feel pressured to do this. The only way is retraining yourself to do what you like and do not pay attention to the opinions of others. It takes daily effort, but it is absolutely possible and highly recommended. You might even end up like Amos Tversky one day. Thank you for this text.

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It feels great to hear you liked the article and that it landed, Tomas. Sounds like you’ve developed a lot of awareness on this topic over many years of looking inward.

I remember wanting to date women in college, but I never did because I worried what my friends would think. It’s unfortunate, because the women were lovely.

Ha, I have quit movies, and I would like experience going for a spontaneous run in my regular clothes.

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Totally agree. My “early mid-life crisis” (as I like to call it) brought me to this realization. Mostly I let go of social connections that didn’t speak to my soul. Also, I finally realized I didn’t actually like skiing or snowboarding despite doing it for twenty-something years. Haven’t miss that one :)

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I love reading this, Mikaela. Such helpful realizations to let go of connections that aren’t fulfilling and activities that aren’t satisfying. Sounds like you were forced to look inside like most of us.

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