Why I Wear an Analog Watch

The thing that limits analog watches is the exact reason I wear one.
They only do one thing — tell time.

Several years ago, I was at a work luncheon at a fancy country club. The host introduced the first speaker, then stepped away from the podium and stood behind her against the wall.  In the ten minutes she was speaking, the host checked his phone at least a dozen times. Was he checking email? Reading texts? Or just keeping track of time to keep things on schedule?
I couldn’t tell.

Yes, my phone has a clock. It’s always in my pocket. There are times, though, when it’s just not appropriate to pull it out to check the time. The default assumption is different when someone sees you check your wrist versus pull out your phone. One reads as timeliness. The other reads as distraction. If that host had looked at his wristwatch a dozen times, it would have been obvious he was trying to keep the meeting running smoothly.

My approach to accessories is pretty minimal.
A simple necklace.
My wedding ring.
A watch.

It’s a signature part of my look. It signals something, without trying too hard to. A dress watch at a dinner party hits differently than a dive watch or a G-Shock.

Not only does a watch complement my outfit, sometimes I choose one to set the tone for the day. If I know I’ve got a hard day ahead at my desk job, I might put on a very tool-like dive watch. The internal signal is simple: this is a day for getting things done. I even have one watch that reminds me the best days are the ones where time doesn’t matter.

One last thing about a wristwatch. The universal gesture for “we’re almost finished here” is a glance at your wrist. It even works if you aren’t wearing a watch — try it sometime.

Time is all we have.
A watch is just a small, quiet way of remembering that.

Checks wrist.

Well, that about wraps it up.