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Welcome to another edition of the 1% Habits Newsletter!

This is where you’ll get up-to-date information on small wins to improve your habits, productivity, and life satisfaction. 

Let’s get to it.

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📈 The Surprising Upside of Staying Home

Yesterday, I was invited to a Yankees game with some friends. It’s something I’ve done every year, but this time I just wasn’t in the mood. Plus, I would’ve missed my son’s soccer game.

As luck would have it, his game was cancelled at the last second.

But you know what? We still had a great day. My son and I watched some football games together, I taught him a few rules of fantasy football, and later the family baked pumpkin bread.

It wasn’t an event with “the guys,” but it was still a really nice day.

That’s when I was reminded of a concept I love: the Joy of Missing Out (JOMO).

Why JOMO Beats FOMO

Everyone talks about FOMO — the fear of missing out. It’s why people say yes to events they don’t care about, scroll endlessly through social media, and overload their calendars.

But here’s the secret introverts already know: the real superpower is JOMO — the joy of missing out. It’s the peace you feel when you choose stillness over noise, depth over distraction, and quality over quantity.

FOMO says: “If I don’t go, I’ll miss something important.”

JOMO says: “If I don’t go, I’ll gain something meaningful.”

The Science Behind It

Research shows that too many choices and too much social comparison make us less happy. Psychologists call this “the paradox of choice”: the more options we have, the less satisfied we feel.

Social media amplifies this effect. Every scroll shows you what you could be doing, eating, or experiencing — and suddenly your perfectly good Saturday afternoon feels inadequate.

JOMO flips the script: it’s not about doing more, but about savoring less — and loving it. When you stop chasing every option, you give yourself the gift of presence.

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How to Practice JOMO in Your Own Life

Here’s a plan you can try:

1. Pause Before Saying Yes. When invited to something, ask: “Will this add energy or drain it?” If it’s the latter, give yourself permission to decline.

Tool: Use Calendly’s buffer feature or block “white space” in your calendar so you don’t overcommit.

2. Limit Social Comparison. Social media fuels FOMO. Try a digital detox, even for an afternoon.

Tools: Freedom, Opal, or Screen Time (built into iOS) can help you set limits.

3. Create Micro-JOMO Moments. You don’t need to skip big events to feel JOMO. Try choosing a quiet night in, a walk without headphones, or cooking with family instead of chasing the next big thing.

Tool: Use Daylio to track how these small choices affect your mood.

4. Celebrate Your No. Each time you say no to something that doesn’t matter, remind yourself you’re saying yes to something that does — whether that’s rest, family, or focus.

Pro tip: Write down what you gained from saying no (e.g., “I skipped that networking event and instead had dinner with my kids”). Over time, this builds proof that JOMO works.

New Section: JOMO as a Productivity Hack

JOMO isn’t just about feeling good — it’s also about focus. Every “yes” you give to something unimportant is a “no” to something that matters. By practicing JOMO, you free up time, energy, and attention for your highest priorities.

Think of it as pruning a tree. You trim away the unnecessary branches so the strongest ones can grow.

● Skip the meeting that doesn’t need you → finish the project that does.

● Say no to the fourth social outing this week → say yes to rest, so you show up energized for the first three.

● Miss the “big event” → be fully present for the small, meaningful one.

New Section: Redefining What “Missing Out” Means

Here’s the paradox: when you embrace JOMO, you realize you’re not missing out at all. You’re actually gaining.

● You gain presence.

● You gain energy.

● You gain deeper connections with the people who matter most.

● You gain clarity on what really makes you happy.

The truth is, most of the things we fear missing out on won’t matter in a week, let alone a year. But the small, quiet moments — baking pumpkin bread, teaching your kid a new skill, laughing over a family meal — those are the ones that last.

Final Thoughts About JOMO

What if the happiest moments of your life aren’t found in crowded rooms, but in the ones you don’t attend? What if saying “no” more often is the fastest way to say “yes” to joy?

When you look back years from now, chances are you won’t remember the random sporting event, the networking mixer, or the party you forced yourself to attend out of obligation. But you will remember the day you stayed home and taught your child something new. You’ll remember the laughter in the kitchen as the smell of pumpkin bread filled the house. You’ll remember the evenings when you were fully present instead of distracted.

That’s the essence of JOMO: realizing that missing out on the noise often means gaining the moments that matter.

So here’s a challenge: the next time an invitation comes your way, pause before you automatically say yes. Ask yourself:

● Will this add to my life or drain me?

● Am I doing this out of genuine desire or out of fear of missing out?

● What could I gain by saying no?

You might be surprised at how freeing it feels to choose less — and how much joy you discover in the space that opens up.

Because sometimes, the best memories are made not in the places everyone else is rushing to, but in the quiet spaces you intentionally choose instead.

Talk soon,

Steve

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