These days, people are generally familiar with FOMO, the fear of missing out. Some have even learned to embrace JOMO, the joy of missing out. But a lesser known (yet related) phenomenon is FOBO ...

McGinnis coined the term FOBO, as well as FOMO, back in 2004 when he was a student at Harvard Business School and wrote an article titled “Social Theory at HBS: McGinnis’ Two FOs.” ...

The concept of FOMO is widely known these days. This term for “the fear of missing out” even made it into dictionaries starting in 2013. But fewer people are familiar with a related and similarly ...

The concept of FOMO is widely known these days. This term for “the fear of missing out” even made it into dictionaries starting in 2013. But fewer people are familiar with a related and similarly ...

The concept of FOMO is widely known these days. This term for “the fear of missing out” even made it into dictionaries starting in 2013. But fewer people are familiar with a related and similarly ...

The term "FOBO" was coined at the same time as "FOMO," but fewer people are familiar with this potent force. By Caroline Bologna 07/02/2025 12:49pm GMT Westend61 via Getty Images ...

What you’re feeling is FOBO – the even worse cousin of FOMO. It’s a problem intricately entwined with the modern age, causing paralysis over what should be even the most trivial of decisions.

Too much of a good thing is, apparently, a bad thing. Forget “fear of missing out.” The latest anxiety-inducing trend is “FOBO” — or “fear of a better option.” In other words, people ...