Meet Christina Crook – Digital Mindfulness Expert, Author, Speaker and Podcast Host
Christina reveals how key shifts in our thinking can help us to prioritize joy and draw closer to one another. Through her writing, podcast, and facilitation of The JOMO Method™—her signature program —she helps people hone in on the relationships and work that matter most to them.
“The Marie Kondo of Digital.”
Harper’s Bazaar
Christina’s Path to JOMO
Christina Crook is a graduate of Simon Fraser University’s School of Communication. She’s worked for some of Canada’s most recognized media organizations, including the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation (CBC) and Rogers Digital Media.
Her own battle with digital overwhelm, balance, and values misalignment led her to write the book The Joy of Missing Out: Finding Balance in a Wired World, which examines the connected world through the lens of her own internet fast.
Christina’s book was a harbinger of the global #JOMO movement and kicked off her ongoing work as a digital mindfulness thought leader, speaker, writer, and host of the JOMO(cast) podcast.
Behind the scenes, Christina is raising three kids with her husband in Toronto’s Junction neighbourhood. You can find her nourishing her mind and body by rowing, mailing postcards, or flying brightly coloured kites with her family on the lakeshore.
She is represented by Samantha Haywood at Transatlantic Literary Agency.
Christina’s writing has appeared in Utne Reader, CBC.ca, UPPERCASE, Christianity Today, Simplify Magazine, Second Nature Journal, Publisher’s Weekly, Religious News Service, Comment, and the Literary Review of Canada.
Watch Christina In Action
Bio
“The Marie Kondo of Digital” — Harper’s Bazaar
Christina Crook is a pioneering voice in the field of digital well-being, dedicated to helping people live more joyful, balanced lives through mindful technology use. She is the award-winning author of The Joy of Missing Out: Finding Balance in a Wired World and Good Burdens: How to Live Joyfully in a Digital Age. Christina has been featured in international media including The New York Times, Psychology Today, and Harper's Bazaar.
As a certified digital wellness educator and consultant, Christina is the host of the JOMO(cast) podcast, where she interviews global leaders on how embracing the joy of missing out enables them to thrive in today’s digital landscape. She is also the founder and CEO of JOMO(campus), an innovative digital wellness education program designed to increase student engagement and focus.
Christina’s expertise has led her to work with creative leaders and organizations such as Oxford University, Adobe, Gimlet Media, and Shopify. She teaches The JOMO Method, an action-oriented approach to digital well-being, and has been named a changemaker by All Tech is Human's Responsible Guide to Tech, co-presented by NYU's Center for Policy.
She serves on the board of Second Nature Journal, the publication of the International Institute of the Study of Technology and Christianity, and is a member of the International Society for Technology in Education, the Media Ecology Association, NASPA (Student Affairs Administrators in Higher Education), and the Writers’ Union of Canada.
Christina lives in Toronto with her husband and three children. Rowing and snail mail bring her joy.
“We need more thoughtfulness added to the conversation around tech, and Christina is that rare mix of expertise and approachability that makes her a highly sought after and respected voice.”
David Ryan Polgar, founder of All Tech is Human Summit
The Internet is NOT what it used to be. You need a roadmap to THRIVE in the digital age.
Let’s Dig In: The Highs, the Lows, the Good, and the Bad
“It was 2013 and I was feeling this flatness. I had grown tired of the web mediating my relationships. I felt like the Internet was making me lazy as a thinker, a writer, and a friend. Then I saw a priest blessing a smartphone and that was the tipping point for me. I decided to fast from the Internet for 31 days.
“I discovered an abundance of time I never thought I had. I experienced peace and a quietness of mind I had been hungering for. I found connection with neighbours, strangers and friends, because I was forced to turn to people (like the day I locked my baby and my keys inside the house) rather than Google for help.
I was figuring out how to flourish in a digital world.
“I decluttered my inbox, implemented a weekly tech sabbath and culled the list of people I follow. I deepened my relationships.
“Embracing the joy of missing out gave me time to craft and present a TEDx talk and write a book about my JOMO experience. This led to panels at conferences and speaking opportunities in front of audiences of esteemed leaders. It was an awesome high. But with those highs came conflict.
"I had young children and a husband who spent 50% of the year on the road for work. I had put out this book and I felt all of these obligations. I said yes to everything. I crashed and burned (again) until I slowly learned that I am not the saviour of the world. What I really needed to do was to practice what I preached in the book—which was to prioritize relationships and joy before all. And what needed the most attention? My family and marriage. So we did that. It was really slow, painful work and we got out of it.
“Through my journey with JOMO I’ve accumulated a lifetime of learnings I feel called to share with others. So here we are, in this reality: we are all going to live with technology for the rest of our lives. But we get to decide how. And I’m here to build and nurture a community of people who can navigate that together.”
Christina Crook
“Christina motivated me to action valuable checks and balances to ensure my digital time wasn’t getting in the way of my goals. One month later, I continue to feel more plugged into my life and less into the web.”
Melissa, Senior Business Partner at Experience Point
So, what’s JOMO all about?
JOMO is the joy of missing out on the right things—life-taking things like toxic hustle, comparison, and digital drain. The JOMO journey began in 2012 when tech entrepreneur Anil Dash coined the term ‘the joy of missing out’ on his blog. Shortly after, New Society Publishers published The Joy of Missing Out: Finding Balance in a Wired World by Christina Crook.
Back then digital well-being was a fringe idea. People got their backs up when you mentioned the words “phone” and “addiction” in the same sentence. Over the last few years, our understanding of the cost of our digital devices has grown exponentially. Today, not a day passes without a new study revealing the true costs of our screen obsession: unprecedented global loneliness, burnout and mental distress. Why? Because, while data informs us, relationships form us. It turns out we need more than information to make meaning.
JOMO is for anyone who wants less input, greater impact, and more joy.
Christina in the News
The Marie Kondo of Digital
Harpers Bazaar
You've likely heard of FOMO. Here's its more positive-minded cousin: JOMO.
BBC.com
Unplugging without FOMO
The New York Times
Forget the FOMO: JOMO is what should govern your life
Condé Nast Traveler Spain
Press Photos
