It’s been 20 years since I removed my wristwatch. I had experienced a run of stressful life events and was living in constant overdrive when I heard a radio talk show host espouse the idea that watches contribute to high anxiety.
He used the example of being late for an appointment, stuck in traffic, and how each glance at your watch increased adrenaline even though there was nothing you could do. It seemed easy enough. Get rid of the watch and enjoy the instant calm.
Well … not quite.
At first, I was breaking my neck to see the kitchen clock, turning on the TV to catch the time and continually checking my car clock while driving. And I was always asking others for the time. Then I started to play a little game. Whenever I wanted to know the time, I made a mental guess. At first, I was off by 10-15 minutes, but soon I surprised myself with how accurate I could be.
Turns out, the less you rely on clocks, the more you develop your internal sense of time. Who knew?
