FOMO – Fear Of Missing Out

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FOMO, the Fear Of Missing Out, is a growing problem among young people. It affects all aspects of their lives from school to sleep.[1]https://eslbrains.com/fomo-phrasal-verbs-with-out/[2]http://learnenglishteens.britishcouncil.org/sites/teens/files/fomo_-_exercises_1.pdf

Look at this blog article to learn more about FOMO and do the exercises to improve your English reading skills.

FOMO

Preparation

The verb “miss” can mean many different things in English depending on the context. Match the different meanings for “miss” with their definition.

  1. He is not a very good basketball player. He misses every shot he takes.
  2. My dog has been missing all weekend. I have been putting fliers up everywhere hoping to find her.
  3. I missed the bus and now have to wait 30 minutes for the next one.
  4. She misses living near the beach.
  5. Can you repeat what the teacher said? I missed the main point.

a. to fail to notice, hear, or understand

b. to notice the loss or absence of

c. to fail to hit, reach, or come into contact with (something aimed at)

d. to be late for something

e. to feel sad that something or someone is not there

Reading

FOMO – Fear Of Missing Out

FOMO is the Fear Of Missing Out. It is the feeling of anxiety a person might get when they feel like they have missed out on something.

In our current society, social media is the biggest contributing factor to FOMO. You can consistently see all of the great things your friends are doing and it makes your feel bad that you aren’t doing them as well.

A growing trend is that this is even affecting people’s sleep. They are so worried about missing opportunities to like, comment, look, and take part in the online world, that they will wake up in the middle of the night to get on their phones.

This growing trend reveals some worrying statistics including:[3]https://trustpulse.com/fomo-statistics/

  • 69% of millennials experience FOMO
  • 60% of people make online purchases because of FOMO
  • 48% of millennials spend money they don’t have in order to keep up with their friends
  • 33% of people try to induce FOMO in their friends
  • 40% of people purchase something once per year just to post it on social media

Needless to say, these habits can cause a lot of problems in your daily life including an overall negative role in your overall psychological well being. In fact, a study in 2013 showed that it actually has a negative affect on people’ overall mood and life satisfaction. Social media can increase your feelings of loneliness and boredom.[4]https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0747563213000800?via%3Dihub

So, we would like to say that you should be responsible when using social media. Don’t let FOMO rule your life. Switch off your devices every now and then. Live in the moment. Don’t worry you won’t be missing anything too important online!

Multiple Choice

Choose the best option to complete the following sentences.

1. The biggest contributing factor to FOMO is…

a. TV

b. social media

c. the internet

2. Research shows that the Fear Of Missing Out can affect your…

a. mood

b. school grades

c. number of likes on social media

3. Around ______ of people will by something online due to the Fear Of Missing Out.

a. 48%

b. 69%

c. 60%

4. The Fear Of Missing Out is…

a. the fear of not having the newest technology

b. the feeling that you need to party all the time

c. the feeling that you are missing opportunities due to what you see on social media.

5. The writer says…

a. we should completely stop using social media

b. we need to temper our use of social media

c. we should use social media even more

6. Around ______ of people purchase something just to post it on social media.

a. 40%

b. 48%

c. 33%

1. b 2. a 3. c 4. c 5. b 6. a

True or False

Select true or false for each statement about this article.

  1. 40% of people don’t make online purchases due to FOMO.
  2. The Fear of Missing Out is a growing trend that doesn’t affect sleep.
  3. This phenomena can have positive affects on your self worth.
  4. The biggest factor that contributes to FOMO is social media.
  5. A 2012 study shows that FOMO can have a negative affect.
  6. 60% of millenials experience FOMO.
1. True 2. False 3. False 4. True 5. False 6. False

Discussion

Do you experience FOMO? Is is something common from where you are from?

If this is too difficult to understand, check out the B2 grammar points to help out!

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