Miles & Points FOMO
After spending a few weeks as a newer Travel on Point(s) Facebook group mod I noticed a disturbing trend, a miles & points FOMO (fear of missing out) trend. This is nothing new in the travel space, but it tends to creep up on people who are newer to miles and points more often. I believe that is why it seems to be so prevalent in the ToP Facebook Group. The group is the place newer people tend to find themselves after they were ridiculed, flamed and overall treated terribly in other groups after all. Arrogance is unfortunately another trait we see often in this space. That is a fight (or article) for another day though. Instead, today I wanted to put together a post to sound the alarm on resisting FOMO.
Miles & Points Should Be The Antithesis To FOMO – Not The Driving Force For It
If you find yourself having FOMO, then you likely need to adjust the way you think about this hobby. One of the main reasons to get into miles and points is to avoid travel FOMO. With miles & points there are no more once in a lifetime trips. That “I’ll never get this chance again” thinking can be tossed aside when you have the points to do these trips pretty much at will. At least once you find your miles & points groove and start to stack up those transferrable currencies.
The truth of the matter is that as long as you have your health, you have time to make that trip happen. It is easy to get caught up day dreaming about other people's trips or feel like you are missing out when getting started. Don't stress, it takes everyone time to build up to certain levels in miles & points. With proper effort and dedication you can get there. This hobby doesn't come with a cheat code, so realize that going from step 2 to step 7 just isn't in the cards. You need to first realize that is okay, and that everyone goes through the same grind when starting out.
I think it would be helpful to walk through a few of the bigger examples of FOMO I have noticed in the group over the last few months.
Transfer Bonus FOMO & Trying To Tame The Maximizing Dragon
I have seen far too many post lately about FOMO over transfer bonus, like the one to Virgin that was around late last year. It got so bad that people were making themselves crazy trying to force a trip just to take advantage of this bonus. Well guess what? Amex had a 40% transfer bonus to Virgin shortly after the first one ended. That’s the way this game works, there is always another opportunity right around the corner.
Even if the timing doesn't quite work out,you can usually pull off the travel you wanted without a bonus anyway. More miles and points have been lost trying to force things, like with a speculative transfer, then have been lost by missing out on the timing of things. The same goes for chasing a mile or point you are not quite ready to handle during your journey. Something like the Alaska Airlines Business card offer comes to mind. Transfer bonuses come, they go, and most of the time they are not for you. That is okay!
Chasing Elite Status Because It Is Good For Someone Else
The next stop on the FOMO train is chasing elite status. The first one that will pop into most people's mind is chasing Hyatt Globalist status. It is all everyone is talking about anyway!
There is no doubt that Hyatt Globalist is an awesome status with awesome perks. I have made great use of it over the past year, but I’m not going for it again. Mark recently wrote about his own decision on letting the status go for next year too.
In order to resist elite status FOMO you need to ask yourself questions, like how many times am I going to use the perks from this status over the next year? Then compare that expected value to what it will cost you in time, money, spend and effort. Do the scales balance?
Social Media Can Be An Instigator
It’s not worth chasing just because you see people write about it and post a photo of some big fancy suite they got upgraded to one time. If you only want this status for one special stay, is it really worth all the work to earn it? There are much easier ways to get the benefits you are after for a one off stay, like booking into the room or class of service you ultimately desire. You can book a suite that comes with lounge access and all of the bells and whistles that come with status on your own. I know, it isn't a “free” perk that way, but you need to realize that all of the people with status paid for it one way or another. Which is a nice way to say that it is far from free for them too.
Just because an elite status offers a ton of value for someone else doesn't mean that it will for you. That is also true of some of the great deals in miles & points…
Even The Best Deal In Travel Can Be A FOMO Trap
What about the beloved Southwest Companion Pass? How many people jump through all the hoops to get this benefit and actually make great use of it? Again, ask yourself how many times am I going to use this over the next 2 years and really get a good return on it? You might just find it’s not really necessary, and you would be better off focusing on earning more transferable points. While getting BOGO flights is pretty insane, it doesn't mean anything if you can't use it.
Another thing to consider is what kind of routing does Southwest have at your home airport. Are you taking funky routings, losing valuable vacation time in the process, just to get a “deal”. Sometimes saving money ends up costing us in the long run, especially in terms of the most valuable currency we have – time.
As with all of the other examples of FOMO, the key to properly fighting it is sound decision making. Resist the urge to follow the waves of excitement of others. It is easy to get caught up in it and take it for a ride, but trust me – all it does is end up crashing on the beach if you don't have a plan. That is why the other key to resisting FOMO is unabridged honesty with yourself when making the decision. Don't fall into the trap of overvaluing the perks to come to the preconceived notion that it is worth it. Predetermined justification in your decision just leads you down a road that ends with regret.
Miles & Points FOMO: ToP Thoughts
My whole goal of discussing miles & points FOMO is to get you to take a step back think about these types of things when you are deciding to chase status, deals or whatever the new hot thing everyone is talking about. In the same vein, don't let the miles & points space, blogger or influencer convince you to travel to a certain area or hotel just because that is where everyone else is going. If it is a place you would normally go, then great, but if it isn't a good fit don't try to force it. As long as you focus on what works for you, and what makes you happy, then it will be a good redemption.
Come over to the ToP Facebook Group to share your thoughts on miles & points FOMO with me.
