Global FOMO
The pandemic has been a whirlwind for all of us. Some have thrived by building beautiful things in the midst of lockdown. Some lost their jobs, opportunities and even their loved ones.
But there’s one thing all of us that we can agree on — the sense of loss and isolation that we’re going through, or what millennials could describe as “Global FOMO”.
For some parts of the world that are going through lockdown, it’s the loss of being able to connect with friends and relatives. Not being able to go out and wander around without a mask. Personally, I was uncomfortable with the lack of progress, both at a personal and societal level.
For some parts of the world that are going through lockdown, it’s the loss of being able to connect with friends and relatives. Not being able to go out and wander around without a mask. Personally, I was uncomfortable with the lack of progress, both at a personal and societal level.
As a global community, we are more divided than ever, culturally, politically and socially. We see beautiful movements clash with not so beautiful ones and people avoiding people due to their ethnicity or colour being associated with the disease. It’s a global mess.
How can we make sense of this meaningless and complicated situation that we’re in? Here are three steps to overcome FOMO in such trying times.
#1 Overcome FOMO by understanding that there are some things that we can’t control.
Let’s face it. There’ll always be things that are beyond our control in life.
The pandemic is just one of the very few examples of this and embracing it in this period of time is more relevant than ever.
Having said that, this does not mean that we should simply just accept and give up. Rather, we should let this realisation make us aware that there are things that are within our control, at least to a limited extent.
For instance, we can change how we react towards events that happen to us by revisiting our interpretations towards them. This is exactly how some business owners manage to overcome the adversity that befell on them as a result of the pandemic.
They focused on things within their control, looking for ways to turn their business around and at the same time knowing when to give up and let go.
Therefore, in the case of overcoming global FOMO, it’s not just accepting that missed opportunities is part of life, but also being able to figure out the things that you could make out of your current situation and act upon them. As Otto Scharmer beautifully frames some questions for us to contemplate:
“What if we used this disruption as an opportunity to let go of everything that isn’t essential in our life, in our work, and in our institutional routines? How might we reimagine how we live and work together?”
Otto Scharmer
#2 Overcome FOMO by embracing the certain-uncertainty.
Many would be quick to think how COVID-19 has made everything unstable and uncertain in a span of a few weeks. But is it justified to blame a single event for everything that has happened?
Consider Kiekergaard’s contemplation on death being an uncertain-certainty. In Three Discourses on Imagined Occasions, he explains that everybody knows that we will die someday, we just don’t know when.
Since death is an uncertain-certainty, it also applies to our existence as well, that life is also a kind of certain-uncertainty.
As Professor Stokes puts it, it’s not that COVID-19 has suddenly made the world uncertain. Rather, it shows how uncertain our lives are all along; how human existence and the social structures in which it is depended upon are so fragile and can easily turn upside-down.
Not to mention our lack of progress on global existential risks. It’s no surprise, but does it mean that we should simply give up? Certainly not.
#3 Overcome FOMO by not giving in to nihilism by remembering that you are not alone.
“What we learn in time of pestilence: that there are more things to admire in men than to despise.”
Albert Camus, The Plague
Not to mention our lack of progress on global existential risks. It’s no surprise, but does it mean that we should simply give up? Certainly not.
In the midst of the widespread suffering right now, we may start to question whether human existence as we know it has any value or meaning. Is this all worth it?
If we agree with nihilism which is the idea that human existence has no value, then consider this. How is it possible that there are countless healthcare professionals in the frontlines working tirelessly to fight the pandemic? What are they thinking and feeling in these moments?
Perhaps it’s the sense of community working to fight the disease together; understanding that they’re not alone in their suffering or having a sense of duty and responsibility towards those who are suffering.
We can’t imagine what is going through their minds, but we can safely assume that they aren’t giving in to nihilism. At least not completely.
The same applies to caregivers, social injustice advocates and other professions who often witness lots of seemingly pointless suffering.
Their efforts show that although there may be times where there is pointless suffering, it doesn’t necessarily mean that we should give in to nihilism.
Furthermore, if we expand our worldview by not putting ourselves at the centre of everything but rather putting ourselves as part of a larger, interconnected system, then we may realise that we are definitely not alone in this seemingly meaningless suffering.
Perhaps we will never understand the meaning of life and human existence or even perhaps the world we live in is meaningless. Either way, we shouldn’t give in to nihilism. Because after all we’re human and as human beings we always seek for meaning in our lives, regardless whether there is meaning in human existence. Feeling FOMO might just be an instinctual response to what’s happening all around us but it doesn’t mean we should give up.