JOMO is that "I-was-right-about-the-market" joyful feeling after narrowly escaping a bad trade and potentially catastrophic losses.
JOMO stands for the joy of missing out — particularly when a cryptocurrency trader refuses to follow the crowd. This is the opposite of FOMO, or fear of missing out, and it's the counterbalance to price rallies driven by hype and frenzy.
What is JOMO in crypto trading?
In crypto trading, JOMO stems from not following the herd, which is often wrong, and ultimately avoiding a potentially big loss.
For example, the recurring bullish calls in the Bitcoin market during the 2020-2021 bull run likely prompted many people to buy at the top in expectation of more upside.
Many market commentators, including analysts at Standard Chartered and JPMorgan & Chase, predicted in 2021 that BTC price would reach $100,000 by the end of the year. The widely-tracked Stock-to-Flow (S2F) model further boosted the bullish argument, given its accuracy through most of Bitcoin's bull and bear cycles.
However, Bitcoin price fell short of its popular $100,000 target after peaking out in November 2021 at $69,000, and is currently down 60% since.
Thus, the JOMO traders who either sold or didn't buy into the rally at the time came out on top. Moreover, they also retained the capital to get in at lower levels when FOMO is nonexistent, such as in June 2022 that marked Bitcoin's latest price bottom.
JOMO after Bitcoin price peak
One of the few JOMO traders who didn't buy into the overly-optimistic Bitcoin predictions in late 2021 was market watcher Michael Gogol. He reduced his crypto exposure a month before Bitcoin's peak, expressing his relief in May 2022.
Called the top in 2021 and 2022.
— Michael Gogel (@mgogel) May 3, 2022
Not bad not bad. I’m proud. pic.twitter.com/ZZe5E445Sz
On the other hand, one trader confessed that he had bought Bitcoin at $60,000 in October 2021 after getting convinced by the market's anti-inflation narrative. He said:
"The whole inflation thing finally clicked. I panicked and entered almost at ATH of 69k. Feels bad. Went down the rabbit hole, hours of research."
Turning FOMO into JOMO
FOMO originates from the objective of making money quickly. Many gullible traders believe they can double or triple their investments within the matter of days, weeks, or months by investing cryptocurrencies.
Usually, traders with FOMO syndrome may open or close their trades multiple times a day without putting considerable thought or strategy behind them. These high-risk trades also impact traders mentally, even leading to stress and sleep deprivation.
Here are four steps that a trader can take to turn FOMO into JOMO:
- Develop a trading plan.
- Keep a trading journal to monitor your trading patterns.
- Analyze potential trades using multiple metrics, including fundamental and technical analysis.
- Ignore emotions, follow your plan and adjust accordingly.
This article does not contain investment advice or recommendations. Every investment and trading move involves risk, and readers should conduct their own research when making a decision.
