Staying in on a Friday because you want to isn’t missing out. It’s opting in to yourself.

Missing out only counts if you actually wanted the thing you skipped. Going out because the evening exists and then checking the time all night is a stranger loss than a quiet night at home ever was. The pull is often not toward the party itself but toward not being the person who was absent. Those are two different wants and they are worth telling apart.

When you turn something down this week, work out which one is tugging. If it is the second, you can stay home without the guilt tax. If it is the first, go.