What does the young generation want? What is the biggest fear in this age of growth and learning? How does digitalisation affect the young crowd? – Yes, these are the questions popping up in our minds about the health and wellbeing of today’s youth.
What is FOMO?
In this world of social media and instant fame, where average screen time per individual is exceeding more than 30% of the total hours of the day, a psychologically developed disorder is evolving in the youth known as FOMO, the fear of missing out.
The term defines a person’s fear of feeling left out and lagging in any concerning situation where he/she wishes to be present or to know everything about it.
This is a phenomenon which is increasing day by day and can cause stress in anyone’s life. It could refer to the perception that others are having more fun, living better lives or experiencing better things as compared to the concerned person.
But what makes this FOMO more hazardous? It is the social media platforms which are giving more air to the flame?
Everyone, especially the youth, is getting obsessed with the trend of getting more and more followers on these social media platforms to get quick fame and popularity. However, the way it is being achieved is taking the youth in the wrong direction.
Also, this fame and popularity are undoubtedly temporary. The faster it is achieved, the faster it can be lost as well. This is going to affect the person who was earlier enjoying the fame. It is being noticed due to this phenomenon a person’s mind could be affected severely and one can act differently.
This includes a deep sense of envy and affects the self-esteem of an individual. Since social media became more advent this issue has become a major crisis in everyone life by comparing people’s life. This led us to do worse than our peers and our sense of normal becomes skewed.
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Briefly, social media though can be used wisely to promote our talent or better things but it has become a platform for bragging where everybody seems to be in a race of showing how lavish and grand their lifestyle is, in comparison with others.
One can easily find people so addicted and dependent on filters which look good, neglecting their real beauty because they have turned stereotypes to believe that this has become their social duty to look good all the time.
But certain steps can be taken to curb the FOMO if anyone experiencing like reducing one’s social media engagement as well as keeping a track of one’s screen time. Also, changing our focus from the negative to the positive side of social media to do something productive could be helpful.
One can also change their feed on social media so that it can show less of what was triggering your thought resulting in FOMO and keeping things which positively motivate you could be useful.
People especially should focus more on making a real connection instead of making online friends as we don’t know whom we are talking to and what he/she could do with all the information we are sharing with them intentionally or unintentionally. Talking to someone in person rather than chatting online could be more useful in case of any anxiety or depression.
FOMO is nothing just a fear which is created in the mind because of over thinking and its curable by one’s effort in pulling back oneself on the right track.
One can easily find people so addicted and dependent on filters t look good neglecting their real beauty because they have turned stereotypes to believe that this has become their social duty to look good all the time.
But certain steps can be taken to curb the FOMO if anyone experiencing like reducing one’s social media engagement as well as keeping a chart of one’s screen time. Also, changing our focus from the negative to the positive side of social media to do something productive could be helpful.
One can also change their feed on social media so that it can show less of what was triggering your thought resulting in FOMO and keeping things which positively motivate you could be useful.
People especially should focus more on making a real connection instead of making online friends as we don’t know whom we are talking to and what he/she could do with all the information we are sharing with them intentionally or unintentionally. Talking to someone in person rather than chatting online could be more useful in case of any anxiety or depression.
FOMO is nothing just a fear which is created in the mind because of overthinking and it’s curable by one’s effort in pulling back oneself on the right track.
Written By:
Ashutosh Kumar Singh
Student of Mass Communication & Media Technology
