Forget FOMO—JOMO Effect NFT Project Aims to Boost Mental Health in Web3

“FOMO,” or the “fear of missing out,” can stress out NFT and crypto traders looking for the next big thing—but a new NFT project is attempting to spread “JOMO” in Web3 instead while raising money for charitable causes.

With Mental Health Awareness Month underway, the JOMO Effect NFT project looks to sprinkle positivity throughout the community and counteract the anxiety that can come from keeping up with the fast-moving space. JOMO is short for “joy of missing out,” a decidedly different sensation from FOMO.

The JOMO Effect NFT collection is the brainchild of Peace Inside Live, a collective of content creators, digital artists, and mental health and wellness advocates. Peace Inside Live began its journey during the height of the COVID-19 pandemic, which is also when the NFT space first surged to towering peaks.

Dropping on May 10, JOMO Effect is a collection of 40 unique digital art collectibles by various artists with a focus on wellness and mental health. The project will be available via the Magic Eden marketplace and minted on Ethereum scaling network, Polygon.

Artists and partners joining in the collection include spiritual thinker Deepak Chopra’s Seva Love project, Time magazine’s TimePieces, House of First, Jeremy Fall, Jana Stern, Brittany Pierre, Coco Stardust, Dr. Lemny Perez, Jimena Buena Vida, Kira Bursky, and Kristina Flynn.

Minting a JOMO Effect NFT will cost 24 MATIC (about $23 today) in the public sale, and proceeds from the drop will benefit five mental health charities: Aakoma Project, Half The Story, The MINDS Foundation, LOVELOUD Foundation, and the American Foundation for Suicide Prevention.

Collectors who buy at least five JOMO Effect NFTs will receive a special edition Adam Bomb Squad NFT for every set of five, and those who collect all 40 unique NFTs will receive extra perks, including tickets to events by TimePieces and House of First.

“Web3 can be a lonely space, as much as it preaches community, because our entire worlds live online disconnected from other humans,” artist Fall told Decrypt. “I’ve been an avid advocate of mental health awareness over the last few years, and think it’s something that needs to be more prominent in Web3. ‘JOMO’ is an interesting new way to help convey a message by bringing artists together.”

Fellow contributing artist Pierre, meanwhile, told Decrypt that she has “experienced FOMO to the nth degree” during her two years in the space. “It’s important to stand back and see the bigger picture,” she added.

Why JOMO?

FOMO took hold in the NFT market amid the 2021 surge, as traders volleyed to mint artwork and collectibles that often brought considerable returns when sold—what traders sometimes jokingly called “generational wealth” from flipping JPEGs.

As the market has struggled and become ever more volatile over the last year, traders have struggled amid diminishing demand as fewer bets on NFTs have panned out in terms of returns—not to mention a prevalence of scams, hacks, and exploits that see collectors parted with their NFTs and/or money.

“FOMO is a pretty unique flavor of anxiety,” Peace Inside Live co-founder Jordana Reim told Decrypt. “We have been really focused on supporting mental well-being, and one of the mental plagues that we have felt very deeply—particularly in tech and Web3—is anxiety.”

Another term has also become synonymous with crypto: “FUD,” or “fear, uncertainty, and doubt.” Last summer, the Bear Market Screaming Therapy Group was formed on Telegram to give crypto traders a place to voice (or yell) their feelings about the state of the market. November’s collapse of FTX only amplified the broader anxiety in the crypto world, alongside other notable platform shutdowns. Events like these helped inspire the JOMO Effect initiative.

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“I have spent a lifetime advocating for mental health and wellness, and the JOMO Effect has been an incredible opportunity to make an impact on a large scale in this way,” Peace Inside Live Web3 Manager Jana Stern told Decrypt.

“I hope that on the other side of this mint that we change—even a little bit—the way we build Web3, with a focus on well-being,” she continued. “Because if the people building Web3 and the new world are not OK, then nothing will get built.”

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Peace Inside Live co-founder Shira Lazar said that in addition to using the Polygon blockchain to mint the NFTs, Polygon Labs also worked closely with the group and supported the JOMO Effect project with Twitter Spaces and promotion.

The JOMO Effect was also created in partnership with Deepak Chopra’s Seva Love and the Chopra Foundation to offer mental health-focused benefits for NFT holders, including an exclusive online meditation with Chopra.

Other perks include access to Peace Inside Live’s library of classes and meditations, plus discounts on metaphysic and wellness services that the group hopes will create awareness for a movement around improving personal health and creating joy from within through arts, conversation, and community.

“We want people to understand their impact from supporting a project like this,” Lazar added. “Not only are you getting a beautiful piece of art that’s typically worth probably 1 ETH+ for some of our artists, but you’re giving back—and then you’re getting back something for yourself.”