My Digital Disconnect: Fear of Missing Out #FOMO

FOMO.

First word: fear.

Fear is one of those funny emotions in life. While some laugh in the face of fear and danger, others struggle on a daily basis just to leave the house. There aren’t many things I’m afraid of, so when Daniel Newman issued us this challenge (to go dark on social media and/or digital devices for minimum 4 hours), I chuckled. In the words of Bonecrusher, “I ain’t never scared.”

FOMO.

Fear Of Missing Out.

Five minutes in: palms are sweaty.

Fifteen minutes in: knees are weak.

Forty minutes in: arms are heavy.

For one of the first times in my life, I was afraid of something. Afraid of missing that next notification. Knowing that a whole world of activity was going on and I was powerless to intervene. One hour in, and I had to quit. Defeated and tapping out after 60 minutes of disconnection, I felt as if my connection to the world was ripped from me.

Frankly, this assignment was doomed from the beginning. I had just connected with a ton of influencers on Twitter due to my epic Meerkat streams that drew in viewers such as Marc Andreessen, Matt Mazzeo, Meerkat founder Ben Rubin, Gary Vaynerchuk and more!

Flushed, I couldn’t possibly disconnect now! This could be my 15 minutes, or it could be something much greater. I didn’t know, and quite frankly, didn’t care. The phone just kept buzzing and lighting up, so I couldn’t pull away.

Flustered, I felt that I was going to disappoint my challenge administrator. I just couldn’t come to grips with putting the tech away. Here are a few observations from my attempted disconnect.

The connections I’ve created on social media channels have clearly impacted and infiltrated my lifestyle beyond the “typical” follower/followee relationship. I’ve met these people in real life, I’ve connected with them on phone calls, Google Hangouts, Meerkat and more. They have become part of my everyday life. It’s become extremely difficult to shut off from them.
I am far more efficient when multi-tasking. I realized that I am a pretty good multi-tasker. If I am not doing 4-5 things at one time, my mind gets bored, rendering me incapable of simple tasks. The phone in hand with laptop running, TV on and eggs on the stove are easier than walking and chewing gum — for me at least.
Social media has made the world a smaller place and therefore, effectively stripped any barriers to communication.
While I enjoy being outdoors, making wine and playing golf and football, I like to share my activities with friends that aren’t able to make it. It builds camaraderie, and many times, has helped me reconnect with friends that I became disconnected with.

Finally, I would highly recommend everyone give this a shot. It is really a test to your mettle and helps you appreciate the technology in front of you, or, conversely, the things you may be ignoring due to technology. Personally, I feel I’ve learned to balance my social and “real” lives to the point where they are integrated. I am sure to chat with my social friends in real life and engage with my real life friends on social media. And when you are afraid of missing out or find yourself lost, remember, the only thing we have to fear, is fear itself.

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