Posted on Tuesday, 11.22.05
FOMS stands for Fear Of Missing Something. For many of us in the technology business, this “Something” could mean (replace blanks with any of the following phrases):
“news about _________________ in your claimed area of expertise”
- a new startup
- a recent M&A activity
- a buzz-worthy product by an existing company
- a hack or extension that could potentially displace an entire product
So, why is this relevant? Because FOMS consumes the affected. Think of it as an addiction or vicous cycle. One that needs nothing short of an intervention! In our case, turning off the machine is the only way because it cuts off the affected from his/her main source of information … shuts of the big pipe. No blogs, no email, no Blackberries, no SmartPhones … nothing with access to the internet.
A drastic measure indeed, but it”s temporary. Just long enough to sit back to reflect, to ponder for a while.
See you soon after you turn the machine back on ;)
FOMS seems an old affliction, it seems directly connected to information overload. I think there is a worse affliction and one that you will come across as your blog grows, and that is fear of not being able to complete all your conversations :-)
Conversation over-load will become a common complaint because all these media technologies are two-way/multi-way–far more opportunties for conversations. And many more conversations to keep up with.