Dan J’s Website

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A Week Without the Apple Watch

After closing my rings every day for over 200 days, I stuck my Apple Watch in a drawer for a week, to see if I'd be happier without it running my life.

I've been wearing it again for a few days now, and... I think I'm keeping it.

It's occurred to me lately how new things—let's focus on technologies for now—come into our lives, and quickly become part of the fabric. How hard it is to imagine life without a smartphone, even though I somehow lived the first 25 years of my life in a world where they didn’t exist…

That’s part of it, though: they didn’t exist. Is it easier to live without something when there’s no expectation you’ll have it?

I’m curious about this. And I’m tempted to stick my phone in a drawer, but I may have to start with a day instead of a week1.

Back to the watch: why did I want to take a break from it in the first place?

What did I hope to gain from not wearing the watch?

Part of the reason for the experiment was the desire to take something out of my life to see if I really wanted it, or, thinking it’s a sensible default to not have an extra “thing” unless it really adds value to your life.

What did I find during the week with no watch?

Why didn’t I sell the watch or throw it in the lake?

I’m pretty sure I do want to keep the watch. I enjoy the convenience of being able to do various things (set timers, control the playback of music/podcasts on my phone) from my wrist, I have not yet been bothered or found myself overly distracted by the notifications (and I can always selectively turn them off), and I have been enjoying the little burst of satisfaction that comes from logging a walk and closing my rings.

Ultimately, I think the watch is adding value.

What changes do I want to make?

I want to do experiments like this more often. Instead of assuming that the way I do things is the way they must remain, change things up on a regular basis and see what happens. Again, this requires a willingness to break “streaks” without totally giving up the habits that the streaks help maintain. I think I’ll be happier over time with this sort of regular reflection and experimentation.

If you do similar little lifestyle experiments, I’d be happy to hear about them.


  1. In fact, I’m going to set a reminder to do that tomorrow. Let’s see how we go. 

  2. i.e. It vibrates in a way that feels like it’s tapping you on the wrist.