The 'Exit Watch' is a MYTH
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- Опубликовано: 26 авг 2024
- #watchaddict #cyclicalsickness
The 'exit watch' is doesn't exist for most of us in this hobby even though we tell ourselves otherwise. Lasting contentment is not predicated on buying an object. It comes from flipping a switch and deciding to be content. If you bought a grail level watch.. how long would you be happy before your eye travels to 'the next one?'
THERE WILL ALWAYS BE ANOTHER WATCH
Thanks for watching!
I think the only way to stop buying watches is to stop consuming watch content. No watch RUclipsrs, no Hodinkee or other watch blogs/websites, no watch forums. Otherwise it's like an recovering alcoholic hanging out in bars while hoping not to drink again.
Well said, sir.
So right there’s no end game to the madness unless it’s taken like any other addiction. People can do what they want it’s there lives . However there are guys massively overspending and unhappy . It does become absolutely bizarre when average guys start to spend 20 30k and justify it as good value .i think rational thought is often left behind .It’s no different from the gambler who keeps upping the stakes
a trick: you can watch series at Flixzone. I've been using it for watching a lot of movies during the lockdown.
@Koda Jairo yup, I've been watching on flixzone for months myself =)
@Pohjois Disaster Moon a
Happy is not the one who has it all, but the one who doesn't need anything more.
Sad isnt it when people spend so much in search for unfounded happiness, when other people are so much happier for much much less
Some people can be happier with cheaper watches, but who knows? They're probably spending lots of money on something totally different. That's how hobbies work.
Almost everyone has a hobby. Hobbies are expensive.
@@N3VURMYND yeah and if can't spend money on the things that make you happy then what's it all for? I mean I'm talking disposable income, if your house is falling to pieces then maybe take a break from spending on watches and fix the roof.
It is interesting how our tolerance for prices is growing over time. At the beginning of my watch journey a 300$ watch was an expensive watch. Recently I found a BNIB Explorer II for 12000$ and my first thought was "that's a bargain, you gotta have it" ;)
Exactly! If someone told me back then the amount of money I would be willing to spend on a watch today (6 years later) I would have NEVER believed it.
You’re singing my song. Story of my life
Noticed 3 things:
1 decreasing price sensitivity
2 decreasing value per dollar spent
3 more watches I like, than I can buy
Consequence: stop buying and more importantly stop researching or endless flippering
The only exit watch for me is if Big Ben fell on me ending my life XD
Lmao.
Lol....this made my day... greetings from Brazil!
Hahahaha
Love this xD
I had a grest laugh with that one! But you are most definitely right. 🥴
It helps when you really understand and believe there is nothing out there for you that will make you 100% content. I really like your take on this Bruce and I fully agree. The kind of contentedness people are often looking for both in the watch hobby and outside of it really comes from within.
I have stopped buying watches even though I still follow new watch releases and such. After buying and selling pretty intensively for years I recognized that the hobby was no longer fun for me. There was stress and anxiety that had somehow crept in. I also feel that I had put more money into it than the enjoyment I got out of it. So I sold my collection. I should have hated it. But it felt like a relief. That is how I knew I made the right decision.
I now have an Omega seamaster 300 master coaxial that I love. And a Rolex Explorer I that I also enjoy a lot. Ever since COVID started I have only worn the Seamaster (less days at the office), and I am toying with the idea of giving the Explorer to my older brother who always treats me with a lot of generosity. It would make me a one watch person. In every other aspect of my life I have a tendency and preference to be minimalist. So I think that would kind of suit me. Ironically, I would get closer to that ideal of perfect contentedness by doing that by buying more watches.
You’re right is just a myth... just got my grail and already looking for my next one. 👌🏽
Me clicking on the video: "That SOB sold his Overseas, didn't he?" 😂
It's definitely a hobby that can encourage 'ladder climbing'. I went from knowing nothing to flipping watches constantly to not having bought one in four years and now spending the time appreciating what I have. I feel happier this way - still intending to buy another but only when something really clicks
You talk about purchasing watches/collecting them as some sort of sickness. Which I am certain is the truth to some (think of archie) - but I think your perspective is coming as someone who might have been spending too much for your own good on watches which you really should have had sense enough to admire from afar like most of us do, instead of being compelled to buy. I don't know how your finances are, but if you have been overspending and now see the light, then I congratulate you on a very good decision for yourself and your family. Good for you!
I think Bruce is just “setting us up” for selling his VC and/or Hulk!😂😂
I wouldn't blame him. He can sell both over (and the Hulk WAY over) retail.
I watched the I sold it video first and this video. Yep you guessed it.
Flipping wives is a lot more expensive than watches!😎
And a whole lot less fun too
Very well said Bruce. It is frightening how we actually become de-sensitised with the cost of watches. Good luck with the health kick, I am doing the same and that picture of the steak didn’t help 😂
Dude steak and potato is super healthy just skip on the mash, cheese and fries !
There is no exit watch; there is only the next watch.
Bruce I think you are 100% correct on your hypothesis on the exit watch from personal experience. The more watches I buy the more watches I want. It is an addiction.
The addiction is the chase, not the watch.
Thanks for your honesty Bruce. The watch hobby has helped me mentally through the pandemic, but as we exit the pandemic hopefully soon, I think my extra income will be better spent on things that have a better spiritual impact on me. My goal then will be to hold onto a couple watches that I truly love. It will be my Rolex GMT Master II, my vintage Omega Speedmaster and my Tudor North Flag, which was my very first luxury watch purchased around or year and a half ago. Your video has reminded me that I don’t need to buy the Cartier Santos Large that I tried on In the Cartier store a few days ago even though it’s a beautiful watch. Honestly speaking I’ve also been trying to take care of my health and have been following a pseudo Keto diet and intermittent fasting for the past year and a half as well. Trying to stay healthy and enjoying watches has kept me sane while I am stuck in China and my wife is stuck in Vietnam. Thanks for this video as it has really help me put my watch Hobby in perspective.
Personally, I found my contentment. Once I obtained the one watch I obsessed over for about 5 years, that was it. My once relatively large collection had shrunk and I became content with the 3 watches I have left, with the one favourite at the core of that perfect (for me) 3 piece collection. For the past few years, consuming watch media is fun in itself and I have no desire to actually buy anything more. Perhaps that might change in 10 years? Who knows.
Oh man, the rides we all take in this hobby can vary so greatly. I get your point, and I think you are correct for many folks out there. I've decide to take at least a 5 year break in watch buying. It's been 1.5 years since I purchased my last watch. It's one I've been drooling over for a few years and when I got it I was super stoked. I'm still over the moon with it. I research, view, keep up on the current and delve into the old but I really want to form a deeper relationship with this watch. I won't say it's my exit watch because who knows what path I'll take in the future. As of now, I'm content, how long that will last, we shall see. If I were a really wealthy man, I would probably have a slew of high end watches that I appreciate but don't spend enough time with to form a solid bond with.
Totally agree on our desensitivity to price. It's amazing how quickly you get comfortable spending amounts.
Well put, true contentment comes from within. Awesome video, thanks for the thoughtful essay. Can’t wait for the next video!
Great video! For WIS, the grail exit watch is a myth and a chase. My plan was a Sub and a Polar Explorer, and it would just be G-Shocks and Smartwatches from there. Soon after the Sub, I got the White Seamaster, Doxa Sub300 Professional, and IWC Mark XVIII along with the Monza in the case. When the call comes in for the Polar Explorer, It's going to be decision time. I cringed when you talked about our price thresholds....yikes!!!
Having bought and sold over 200 watches since 2015 I am getting close to finishing my collection at last. It has been quite a journey, and also an education.
Would be interested to see ur collection, and how many watches did u settle with ?
@@talal9260 me too
Love to see that collection
I think I bought the last piece for my collection after many circles.
Waited 8+ minutes to know what you were doing with that VC.
I read this quick and thought it said the exit watch is a MVMT
Bahahaha
Its a vicious circle, it's a never ending circle. Just keeps going round and round, never ends. Thats what makes it vicious...and a circle.
Realest shit i ever heard
I had a few months starting buying a watch (affordable) nearly every week. Was looking for the next before the last arrived . Soon as my Sinn arrived I haven’t looked since .....
The only thing that will stop me is abject homelessness... What is not a myth, is the "keeper." Another thing to realize is, a watch is really just a thing. And we put a lot of stock into them. We get so excited and then when it comes we're like, "Oh yeah, this is a watch."
Its a great journey. I love it. Not many passions have so many variables
Such an outstanding point and a perfect description of my flawed psychology/reasoning. Outstanding stuff, sir.
This is very true.
Can’t wait for the next video. Maybe Bruce got a Nautilus? A RO? An Aquanaut? One of those really hard to come by pieces?
Thanks Bruce, you've convinced me that lasting contentment is to buy a new watch every 2 months
Excellent thoughts. The desensitivity to price is extremely true for me. When I got into the hobby a year ago, buying a $4,000 watch was absolute lunacy to me. $300-$500 seemed like a "reasonable" amount. 6 months later, I bought a $1,500 watch and now nearly a year later, I'm saving for a $4,000+ Grand Seiko. And you know what? That sort of price on a watch no longer seems as ridiculous as it once did. Very weird how that works.
Try to get what you desire but more importantly desire what you have. Not just for watches.
I'm doing this atm. 😂 Shopping watches with a 10k budget but I think $200 on sunglasses is crazy. 😆
Hello Bruce! Good subject to make a video on, you made some fair points. the only time I've taken a break from watches was when I saved for my enduro mtb, so basically when another hobby takes the place of main attention in our lives. Unfortunately or fortunately, with watches, it never ends :)
Cheers,
You are spot on. I was lusting over the BLNR for a long time, now I am chasing Submariner and Pepsi. I feel like this hobby is more about chasing what's difficult to obtain more than enjoying what you have.
I look at it differently. I do believe that the "exit watch" is a myth, you are correct there. It's just not the nature of this hobby. But I view a Grail watch is the one watch that you may have to save a little more for to purchase because it might be out of your comfort zone as far a price goes or even availability. Or maybe even a Grail maybe the one watch that you know you may never attain but still admire. Watches that truly only super rich and connected have access to. Another great video.
I bought a Seiko SARX two months ago. Even though it’s pretty modest at about €800 I thought it would be my ‘exit watch’. I’ve been into watches for a few years and have a small but considered collection and agonized over spending the money. Thought I was done once I got it in my hands. Turns out nope, it’s just conditioned me to look for my next big purchase. Totally agree I don’t believe there’s an exit watch for some.
No need for an exit watch if you don’t let the hobby get obsessive. I have been into watches for around 12 years now but still content with just buying Seiko.
I could afford to get a Swiss piece or two but they just don’t do it for me. Not my style.
I have to admit that I am a watch addict: Expensive, inexpensive, Seiko, Rolex, Swatch. I look at and read about most of them, and bought and continue to buy lots of them. The best I think I can do is to try to control my impulses to to keep from buying new cool watches. Also after many purchases I also need to purge the collection once or twice a year. You are right Bruce. There is no grail and no exit watch! I could buy a new A. Lange & Sohne and within 2 weeks I'd be looking at new Seiko's and Tudors.
Ha ha... Of all the guys doing vids that I view, you are the biggest watch nut of em all! Keep flippin. Keep rockin!
great show! I've had many watches; some expensive and some not...all desire vs function and then one day a sleeper grail shows up and now I'm smitten rocking a Smiths Everest PRS-25 every single day and I cannot take it off my wrist! 🥰❤️😍😃 I do however believe a 1-2 punch collection is in order, hmmm a high level seiko or speedy will do next :) 😂
Nice teaser! You got me. Can't wait to hear what you have done! I am slowly getting my ducks in a row to buy a Day-Date in white gold.
--Michael
Truly an addiction. I have owned everything from Timex to Rolex, trying to find The One. Does not exist.
Hi, my Exit watch was purchased as not the one I dreamed off, just I missed diver in the collection and enjoyed the videos with Omega 2254.50. But here it is😉 agree it is never going to happen when you think the next watch you dream off is definitely the last one 😂
The Exit Watch is to exit out of this rabbit hole.
I’ve found that I got the watch that, for the moment, is my “grail” in a matter of speaking, but by accident. I had been looking to increase the value of my collection after a year or two of understanding value for money and appreciating the budget models, but I ended up just not wearing them because I didn’t enjoy them as much even though I appreciate them and love the ascetic. I purchased a watch I liked the look of but didn’t love, especially at first. It was a bit longer in the lug to lug and on straps I’d just didn’t seem right. But, I loved the way it looked on the bracelet to I had to buy that oem bracelet separately and now I find it so difficult to wear anything else and I think it could be my exit, at least for a few years. It is the Certina DS First Ceramic Chronograph
I agree mostly, there's no end nor grail watch.
But I keep everything I buy, no flipping, so after a time, you start to have an exit collection, I believe.
Must say that at the moment for the price I am LOVING the Vacheron Overseas right now! Beautiful watch and almost affordable!
What has slowed me down, besides my painfully limited budget, has been to limit watch buying (or any other commodity fetishism) to special occasions--and I don't mean annual holidays, but actual accomplishments worth commemorating that will lend a special sentimental value to item. My Fifty-five Fathoms will always be my "wedding watch" just as my incoming Alpinist will be my "Masters degree watch" and so forth.
100% bro. Great video. It’s a switch we have to flip.......or just leave the lights on. Party time
Very well said
Hey Bruce you nailed it
As long as i breathe i will be buying watches ,anything from a Rolex to a Vostok.
Watches are like women i love them all.
A journey without a destination
As a 21yo who started off with an skx, got a presage (sary057) after and a samurai (rip), I currently have my blue mm200 for more than a year and I still love it to bits every day :).
From the first picture I saw of it, I knew I had to have it. Thankfully the satisfaction lasted, you get used to whatever is in your surroundings, of course, but man do I appreciate it every time I look at the time, sometimes getting so distracted I don't actually process what time it is at first glance hahah.
I am accumulating a permanent group at the core of my collection, though.
Damn Bruce, that cliffhanger combined with the scary music was just 😱🤯🤯🤯
But to be honest I really dig your thoughts. Very relatable to what I experienced so far in this hobby. I'm really curious to see what you have to tell in the next epsiode! Keep it up!
I do believe in grail watches but not everybody has one or is capable of having one (as Bruce puts it, for some people the grail is the hunt). For me it is the Rolex Datejust and that will never change. But it is not my grail just because I like it but because of what it makes me think of and feel and a time that once was. For a person to have a true grail, the watch must mean something more than just monetary value or just that you like the way it looks. Because there is always a better looking watch and there is always a more expensive watch.
Great point, contentment comes from within. I used to just wear watches as a tool, I needed to know the time so I wore a Timex. When I got "into" watches I used to dream about owning a Sub or SMP, maybe even one day a Lange. As I started buying "nice" watches like Hamilton and CW, I realized that a more expensive watch was not going make me happier. Sure there would be a quick rush from strapping on an Omega, but it would fade, and I'd be left with a hugely expensive piece of status jewelry that is worse at it's job than my Timex Atlantis. Since coming to that realization I have decided that I'll play around at the affordable end of watches, and only pick up things that really interest me. This way I'm not chasing the "high", and I'm not putting myself into the position of needing to "exit" due to rising costs.
I loved the message of the video and it was a thoughtful discussion...but I can’t stop thinking that you’re Chris Kirkpatrick
My transition from just a guy with a few modestly priced watches to a collector started about 3 years ago. I never bought into the whole “grail watch” concept. Perhaps that is because, from the start, I realized that spending more than about $500 on a watch did not seem logical. Spending $500 is not a strain on my budget, $20,000 (for a single watch) would require some serious justification. We bought my wife a Rolex over twenty years ago. She likes it, but I see nothing magical about it. My only “exit strategy” is deciding who will get which watches when I die. I have yet to sell any watch and just give away the ones I no longer want or think a friend might really like.
I have six watches I wear. I have two more to buy. Waiting for the call on one, and the second will be bought in 2026. That one in 2026 will be my work and watch collection retirement watch. Now, my wife may buy me some lower priced ones as gifts. She has done it once and I love it, but two more for me to buy.
100% agree - total myth for an enthusiast. Price desensitization is a great observation! Grand Seiko and Omega were supposed to be my one-two punch..yeah, that was a myth too. But hey, now I want a new watch AND pizza & wings.
Solid argument Bruce. But you cannot sell your Overseas or Hulk! At least, I could not if I were you. I am too much of a sentimental guy and the only time I will pass a watch on is when I give it away to my future kids or relatives. Interested to see your next video!
It's a bit different with me. I'm completely content with my current collection: one Rolex, one high end Seiko, two Omegas. I'm not looking for anything else. However, if the Military Exchange had a sale on the right Aqua Terra (38mm blue dial) I might succumb to temptation :)
I wore my first Breitling Automatic I, my first adult watch, for 21 years. It went everywhere with me and I handled it rough daily. It was and is part of my body, like jade. I did not maintain it except for the twice yearly polish with a polishing cloth. I didn’t service it. It didn’t seem to need service. I’m not passive about watches - I have a deep interest in artful and functional timepieces and I can build my own mechanical watch. I simply made a choice to wear it until it showed signs of wear. It was the ultimate field test on a very expensive watch. I have a second Breitling now, its proper older sibling - its movement and many complications are precisely the tools I need, matched with elegance and understatement. Which is to say, in that sense, it’s the same watch as my first. I’m sending in my first Automatic I now for complete maintenance and polish. I won’t buy another watch until many years from now when I give my timepieces to my sons. I don’t know what it will be, but it’ll be the right one at the right time and then I’ll probably die with it. I’ll probably build it.
It’s like a gambler, they say he or she will never gamble again! Like a shopaholic that will never shop again! Addiction is greater than, limitations!
Disagree Bruce. Definitely depends on what you want out of your collection but if you're ok with keeping and holding a watch then i think you can reach your goal and stop. Doesn't mean ill stop watching videos and enjoying but I'm content for myself.
Every time that there is a new release, you change your mind!
Watch addicts like us is not easy to kick this hobby. At least not in the near future for me....
Wise words. Couldn't agree more.
I do not like the conclusion. But it makes financial sense as Bruce needs to run his RUclips channel so can never exit.
I quarantine=bought 2 Citizen Promaster divers more than a year ago. I was tired of being in the house, and .I bought them to treat myself. I'll buy an Orient OS200 this fall for my birthdayl and that will be it. I'm done buying watches, I've got enough. There may not be an exit watch, but there is an exit state of mind.
This is so true. I’ve tried and failed so many times over the years!! 😂
Ha ha !!! Great video today ! Kind of addresses the fact that I'm never quite satisfied. Every time I look at my collection when trying to figure out what to wear , I'm always thinking about just one more watch that I've seen and just have to get . It never ends . My biggest problem , unlike you , is parting with them . I really have to pair it down . As I write these words I'm waiting for DHL to show up today with a new purchase. Lol
😂 this felt like RUclips therapy ! Looking forward to seeing your next big purchase!
Hmm, interesting subject... So true about desensitisation to prices.
Sold most of my humble collection and got my Aquis, which I never take off. Would like a beater, but begrudge spending less on a "lesser" watch 🤔😂. My Grails are a Seamaster and North Flag, the Omega won't happen (money will go on classic motorcycles or another U-bass) but I shall have a NF one day.. Not an exit watch, coz I've been interested in watches for 35 years and can't see my interest waning, but will hopefully be my last watch purchase. We'll see if that happens tho 😉
Cheers mate 👍🏻👍🏻
Made it down to 3. Now back to 6
My Explorer 214270 MKII is helping me on this issue so far. 😁
I do agree! I really enjoy watches I have no regrets. However I do get jealous of people who have had 1 watch for life. I want that relationship, but I have realised those people aren't really watch lovers. It's not going to happen for me.
I need to thank you Bruce, as this is why I will exit the watch market...all these types of channels fuel it...! Here today gone tomorrow!!
Need to quote this ..
By Epictetus....
Wealth consists not in having great possessions, but in having few wants.
Super intrigued! When??
No matter how much we tell ourselves otherwise, in this “hobby” wearing a new watch doesn’t change your day to day life, and the only active way to engage in the hobby is to buy/sell watches. The only way to really have an exit watch is to actually stop following watch forums/RUclips/Instagram and find a different hobby to keep your interest/income
I have a modest collection. A seiko sarb035, a seiko dolce sacm171 and a casio gxw -56-1bjf. I'm content. I love online watch content, but I'm able to look and learn and not want to buy.
I bought two watches thinking they were my grail watch. I still have one of them and love it dearly. The other was a chronograph diver I realized was far too big for my small wrist and was going to be more expensive to service than I could tolerate. The grail, for me is a changing target. There is always another waiting to be found!😱
That was dirty. Lol. Great cliffhanger!
I would have a watch for every occasion and flip them as I fall out of love with them, if I do... dam conundrum right there!
Thank you for discussing this side of the habit...I mean hobby. 🙂
So deep, so true...... Now, back to watchUseek.
Best outro ever
ROLEX SUB 41 no date ...for me
I absolutely love mine. That is a great exit watch!
Great choice.
The best way to deal with this is to NOT have a grail watch, the next watch is just the next watch and there will be many more after no doubt ;)
I just got my holy grail 3861 hesalite speedmaster two weeks ago and I'm already looking at the Seiko king turtle 🐢😅
Hedonic adaptation stalks us all, assuming you’re human 😆
Omega Speedmaster Professional Mitsukoshi Special Edition is my Grail Watch.
Honestly that would have been a great combo Bruce . I too want a champagne dial GS .
Lots of mixed messages here, Bruce. :) It's one thing when my wife tells me that collecting watches is a sickness. It's quite another when the guy with a watch-based RUclips channel says it. Of course, you're right. You do need to find contentment with what you have regardless of what it may be. You certainly can't find it in the endless chase for the next thing.
Once you have a basic collection (GMT/Diver/Chrono/Dressy) then just put your name on Rolex AD for a super hard watch. It will take you 3years or more to get it but hey at least stops you from buying other watches.