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SmallChange is a weekly feature at Never the Same River Twice. This category features quick and easy activities you can do on a lazy Sunday morning to learn a new skill and feel better. If you have any suggestions for this series, tell us your idea in the comments.

Ed. Note: Sorry about the lack of an audio post this week. I recorded one, but I’m having some technical problems getting it titled, tagged and cross-posted from Utterz. If you’d like to listen to it, click over and look up NSRT. You’ll have access to my complete audio archives. If I can get the tech issues worked out, I’ll add it to this post. Here’s the main idea of what I said:

Hey, it’s the weekend. Take your watch off!!

I used to be addicted to wearing a watch. A few years ago I accidentally washed - and dried - my watch and I absolutely panicked. I had to rush out right then and buy a new one. I felt naked walking around without one.

To me, the downside to wearing a watch is that it acts as an enabler keeping me from being present in the moment. I’ll find myself in a meeting - which I can’t leave until it’s over - and I’ll keep glancing at my watch and thinking about what I have to do next. Same thing when I’m talking to someone. It’s really annoying to me when someone is glancing at their watch when I’m trying to talk to them, but I was doing that all the time.

So, I stopped wearing a watch, as you can see from my high quality photo of my own wrist. It’s been very freeing. I find myself much more in the moment. If I’m stuck in a meeting, it’s much easier for me to accept that I’m stuck and I might as well listen instead of planning what I need to do the second I leave. If I’m talking to someone, I can pay attention and listen to what they’re saying.

Now, the simple act of removing my watch didn’t magically cause these changes. Rather, it was a physical way of reinforcing a change in mindset, a lot like the magic hair tie trick.

At first I was worried that I wouldn’t be able to keep track of time enough to make all my hard calendar commitments. The good (and bad) thing is that in the developed world, clocks are EVERYWHERE. Chances are, you have a cell phone in your pocket or purse right now, which has a clock built into it. You probably also have a clock in your car, on your computer display, on the wall in your building, and blinking away on several electronic devices in your home. In a pinch, you can always ask someone else for the time.

So, just for the weekend, give it a try. Take your watch off and see how it works. And, as always, share your experiences in the comments.

Coin photo by novitas. Photo of my attractive wrist and high-priced hair tie is mine. Feel free to use it with a link back to this site.