FOMO, of course, is the avoidable malady often known as ‘fear of missing out.’ It can completely undermine a life well lived, because it drives people to follow a crowd out of fear.

KIMO is in the past tense. “Knowing I missed out.” This is also avoidable, but in a different way. (I pronounce it K-eye-moh.)

I recently joined a club that sends out a liter of olive oil every now and then. And it comes with a newsletter. The newsletter reported that so many people are now members that they couldn’t send everyone the same type of oil, so they split the shipment in half. They then reported, in detail, everything about each of the two oils.

I can’t help it. I liked the reporting on the other one better.

While I’m confident that the one I ended up with will be delicious, my knowledge of what I missed, so beautifully described, is unavoidable.

It didn’t have to be. They could have also divided the newsletter in half. And more helpful, I could simply choose to not feel KIMO if it isn’t helpful.

Giving those you serve the satisfaction of knowing that they made a great choice is a fine service to offer. And we can find it for ourselves if we try.

*Originally published on sethsblog.

Seth Godin has written eighteen books that have been translated into more than thirty languages. Every one has been a bestseller. He writes about the post-industrial revolution, the way ideas spread, marketing, quitting, leadership, and, most of all, changing everything.

Image courtesy of Burst.