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Key Highlights
- JOMO promotes slow, intentional travel, focusing on depth over destinations.
- Logging off from social media and WhatsApp family chaos is more restorative than any five-star hotel.
- Choosing not to join every trip or social event leads to more self-awareness
Sometimes it feels like the whole world is in Bali, eating dragonfruit bowls under palm trees, while you’re at home in a wrinkled T-shirt, eating leftover efo riro from a takeout container.
Everyone’s flaunting passport stamps, and you’re just praying your vacation days reset soon.
But what if this moment, yes, this very ordinary, un-Instagrammable moment—isn’t a loss, but a quiet win? What if not being in the thick of it is a radical, joyful choice?
That’s what The Joy of Missing Out, or JOMO, is all about.
So, What Is the Joy of Missing Out, Really?
The Joy of Missing Out is more than a cute Instagram quote in cursive font.
It’s a mindset—an intentional decision to stop chasing every trending location, wellness fad, and group trip planned in the WhatsApp group chat with too many emojis and no clear itinerary.
Instead of booking the next flight because everyone from the university is going to Zanzibar, JOMO is choosing to stay home, listen to Asa, cook a real pot of okra soup, and call your mother, not for obligation, but for joy.
It’s skipping the drama of TSA lines and overpriced retreats to sit in the sun on your balcony with a cup of zobo, feeling like royalty in your skin.
It’s not just about missing out. It’s about missing out on the right things so you can truly tune in to yourself.
Why Travel Burnout is Stealing Your Joy
Travel was once a luxurious escape. A way to unplug, rediscover, and rejuvenate. But in today’s hyper-documented world, it’s become a performance.
You don’t just go to Morocco anymore—you must post the leather markets, the mint tea, the camel rides, and at least three outfit changes in the Sahara dunes. God forbid you go to Cape Town and not film a sunrise hike up Table Mountain.
The result? We return from vacations more drained than we were before we left.
Many Africans working and thriving in America feel the double pressure: succeed at work, and then succeed at relaxing. Even leisure becomes a checkbox.
The flights are rushed. The schedules are overbooked. The Wi-Fi is still on. You’re physically away but mentally still in your Slack notifications.
JOMO, in contrast, says no to this glorified chaos. It invites you to reclaim travel not as a badge of busyness, but as a balm for your spirit.
The Shift Toward Slow Travel: A Better Way to Wander
Let’s talk about slow travel. It’s not just about moving at a slower pace. It’s about choosing fewer destinations and more depth.
Instead of hopping between four European cities in six days, Vienna on Monday, Rome on Wednesday, Amsterdam on Friday, imagine spending a full week in just one place. No need to chase the “Top 10 Things to Do in…” lists. You simply live in that moment.
Picture this: you’re in Savannah, Georgia, far from the chaos of touristy hotspots. You wake up late in a charming Airbnb decorated with old jazz records and smell fresh bread from a nearby bakery.
You walk, no destination in mind. You talk to the Ghanaian vendor at the local art fair and buy a beaded bracelet, not because it’s trendy, but because it reminds you of your grandmother’s jewelry. You journal in the afternoon. You don’t check your email. You sleep deeply that night.
That’s not just travel. That’s healing. And you didn’t even leave the country.
JOMO as a Wellness Practice: Rest Is Not Laziness
The truth? Most of us didn’t grow up with rest as a valued virtue. If you’re African in America, you likely inherited the sacred family mantra: “You didn’t come to America to sleep.”
So, we hustle. We overwork. We overcompensate.
But JOMO reframes rest as resistance. As power. As purpose.
Booking a quiet weekend in upstate New York with nothing planned but reading, eating suya, and meditating isn’t indulgent. It’s essential.
Taking a train to D.C. to visit the African American Museum, and then sitting by the Lincoln Memorial, reflecting in silence—it’s not boring, it’s transformative.
Saying no to the overhyped cruise trip that’s giving you anxiety just thinking about all the forced fun is self-care. Wellness doesn’t have to be expensive. It just needs to be honest.
The Real Benefits of Missing Out: What You Gain When You Stay Back
You gain more than you lose when you choose JOMO. You reclaim your time. You protect your peace. You connect to your own rhythm.
You find yourself walking more. Listening more. Laughing at things you hadn’t noticed before, like the way the birds in your neighborhood sing different songs depending on the time of day.
You stop performing and start living. And that deep, grounded feeling you get when you’re not chasing anything? That’s not boredom. That’s freedom.
Conclusion: Reclaiming Your Peace Is the Ultimate Destination
The Joy of Missing Out is not about staying home forever or never exploring the world. It’s about approaching life—and especially travel—with intention, not obligation.
So, the next time someone asks, “Weren’t you supposed to be in Mexico with the crew?” smile, exhale, and say, “No, I chose something better.”
