The State of FOMO in Stock Trading and Investing

Trading on the stock exchange and investing is not without failures that spoil the mood and cause depression, but there are situations when even making a profit does not save you from disappointment.

Today I want to share with you my thoughts on FOMO (Fear of Missing Out), a condition that literally translates to “fear of missing out.”

This emotional state is familiar to anyone who has at least once regretted missed opportunities while trading on the stock exchange or investing.

I will tell you how this manifests itself, share my experience and give some tips on how to cope with this condition.

What is FOMO?

FOMO, or Fear of Missing Out, is a psychological state when you are afraid of missing out on potential gains or regret that you could have earned much more on a deal that closed prematurely.

It is often accompanied by anxiety, regret and even irritation. In investing, this condition can cause you to make impulsive decisions: re-buy an asset at its peak or sell too early.

And I know what I’m talking about, because recently I also encountered the effect of lost profits (FOMO).

My case with Bitget Token

About six months ago I decided to invest in the Bitget Token (BGB) . The price at that time was $1.16 per token, and I thought: “Why not, since Binance’s cryptocurrency costs $700, why can’t Bitget’s cryptocurrency at least come close to the cost of BNB?

As a result, I bought 1000 Bitget Tokens for $1160 and patiently held them for over half a year.

However, for a long time, the price not only did not grow, but even fell below $1 per token. When BGB rose to $1.40, it was decided to take profit, after all, a small profit is better than nothing.

But even after the sale, I was interested in observing the behavior of BGB, which began to grow again. Imagine my disappointment when the price reached $6.50 per coin, and the lost profit amounted to more than $5,000.

The main thoughts were:

• “Why did I sell so early?”
• “If I had only waited a couple of weeks, I could have earned many times more!”
• “Why did I sell everything?”

This moment was classic FOMO. I began to think that I had done something wrong, although in fact my actions were quite logical and thoughtful.

Why does FOMO occur?

When you see the market continue to rise after your decisions to sell, it's easy to fall into a trap. FOMO is a combination of several factors:

• Comparison with others - You look at people who have held on to assets and hit the big jackpot, and you start to think that you are worse than them.
• Illusion of Control - It seems like you could predict growth if you analyzed a little more or took more risks.
• Emotional swings - Profit or loss in the market is always associated with strong emotions. Sometimes these emotions begin to guide your actions rather than your mind.

How to deal with FOMO while investing?

After the BGB incident, I reconsidered my attitude towards investing in cryptocurrencies and developed several rules that help keep FOMO under control:

Never sell everything - it wouldn't be such a shame if I sold the Bitget Token for the amount of money invested, which would leave me with about 200 BGB that could be held for as long as possible.

Focus on long-term goals - Remind yourself why you started investing. If your goal is stable capital growth, then do not chase quick success. If you want quick profits, then it is better to trade intraday through cryptocurrency brokers and using leverage.

Accept that you may not catch every opportunity - That's okay. There will always be missed opportunities in the market, but it is important to remember that there are many more opportunities ahead.

Learn from your decisions - My Bitget Token case was a lesson for me. Now I understand that I took profit on time, and subsequent growth is just part of the game. Moreover, the proceeds were again invested in other, promising assets.

Fear of Missing Out is something that almost everyone in investing experiences. But it's important to remember that the market is always full of opportunities. Missed one? There will be another one. The main thing is to act wisely, follow your strategy and not let your emotions take over.

My experience with Bitget Token taught me that regretting past decisions does not make them wrong. The main thing is to continue to learn, improve your skills and move forward, no matter how many years you have been trading.