A Radical Honesty Experiment in the Watch World
What happens when a watch enthusiast tells nothing but the truth ?
Radical Honesty is a practice and philosophy that encourages complete truthfulness in all aspects of life. Developed by psychotherapist Dr. Brad Blanton, it advocates for eliminating lies, both big and small, from our daily interactions and inner thoughts.
The core principle of Radical Honesty is to express openly what you notice, think, feel, and want in the present moment. This approach aims to reduce human suffering by fostering authentic relationships, decreasing stress, and promoting personal growth.
Dr. Anna Lembke, a professor of Psychiatry at Stanford University, adds valuable insights on the benefits of radical honesty. She suggests truthfulness enhances self-awareness, creates more fulfilling relationships, and helps maintain accountability. Dr. Lembke also notes honesty can be a powerful tool in addiction recovery and may even help prevent future addictions!
Practitioners of Radical Honesty believe, by eliminating filters between our thoughts and speech, we can achieve greater freedom, intimacy, and aliveness in our relationships. Clearly this level of honesty can be challenging and sometimes uncomfortable, but proponents argue the long-term benefits outweigh the short-term discomfort.
The practice involves not just avoiding overt lies, but also confronting and expressing hidden thoughts and feelings, including anger and resentment. This open expression is seen as a path to forgiveness and deeper connection with others.
Shall we give it a try?
Here’s the truth about why I’m writing this post:
I want to keep up with my self-imposed schedule of one newsletter and one long-form post per week. Ideally, I want the CEOs of major Swiss watch brands to read this stuff and to build a voice in the community to effect meaningful and positive change. I also just enjoy the process of writing about new stuff I read, because it helps me embed the knowledge in my own head, but I often struggle to recall the information I’ve consumed so writing about it helps me keep a repository of things I may need to reference later in life.
Ideally, I want congratulatory emails from brands, and job offers from industry players which I can politely decline. Or accept, if they’re really good. Then get a generous counteroffer from my current workplace. I enjoy the watch world immensely, but it just doesn’t seem to offer enough to keep the lifestyle I currently enjoy. One can dream, no?
To be totally honest, I regretted starting this post about 60 seconds after I started typing this section. As I wrote, I knew this post would be a major chore. Here we are, we don’t quit, do we 🙄
Right, so how about honesty in the watch world?
What if every party just stopped lying? Told the truth, all the time. No more “patina” or “tropical dials” … no more “congrats” or “nice watch” - just the naked truth about our thoughts, watches and our obsession with them.
What if we deleted all the filters between our brains and our mouths when discussing watches? If you think it, say it. Confess to your AD you’re flipping the Rolex they just sold you. Tell your friend you’re lusting after their Perpetual Calendar, or indeed, tell them their new Greubel is actually an eyesore or that you think they are insane for buying a passion-fruit-themed watch. Maybe it’s the only path to authentic relationships in the watch community, the only way to scrape away the thick layer of in-authenticity covering the industry and hobby.
Oversharing? Is there even such a thing?
I know, I know. It sounds like one of the most idiotic ideas ever, all the way up there with Hublot’s MP-05 LaFerrari and Jean-Claude Biver launching his own brand. Inauthentic communication greases the horological world. Without lies, watch brands would falter, collectors would be blacklisted, egos would be deflated, and traditional watch media companies would cease to exist.
Sounds impossible, but, what if?
People find it so easy to lie. Not big lies. Not lies like “This limited edition of 1,000 pieces is already sold out after one day,” those are just unethical journalists. The ones I’m talking about are tiny lies. Omissions perhaps. Semi-truths too. The kind everyone tells in the watch community, and in their lives outside of it.
People tell too many of these every day. “Yes, that Streamliner looks great on you.”
“I’d love to join for dinner, but I am travelling.”
“No, I can’t buy that piece because my wife said ‘no more watches this year’.”
It’s bad. Maybe a solid undertaking of truth therapy would do everyone some good.
Imagine someone decides to try it. A radical honesty experiment in the world of watches. No holds barred, no punches pulled. Just pure, unadulterated truth about watches and the industry, no matter the consequences…
Say you find out about a watch collector in London who follows Radical Honesty to a T. Intrigued, you decide to meet them. After some blunt WhatsApp messages like: “You seem to have a genuine interest and truly hope you’re not planning to do a superficial and lousy job like most watch journalists,” he agrees to meet.
It seems he’s only doing this because he’s bored and hopes you might have an interesting watch to show him. Anyway, eventually you find yourself outside his understated yet clearly expensive residence in South Kensington.
You’re greeted at the door by a man in his late 60s, dressed in a casual but clearly bespoke suit. “Come in,” he says, not smiling. “I’m Geoffrey. You’re five minutes late, and it annoyed me. I was about to start drinking without you.”
Geoffrey leads you into a minimalist living room. The walls are bare except for a single, exquisite clock. You’re sitting on Eames chairs, and he’s swirling a glass of what smells like very expensive whisky.
As you sit, you notice a watch on his wrist - a Patek Philippe 2499 in pink gold with a gorgeous patina. You compliment it, and Geoffrey snorts.
“This old thing? I bought it because I thought it would impress people like you. Honestly, I find it a bit boring. Keeps terrible time too. But it does make me feel superior to most other collectors, so I keep wearing it.”
He adjusts the watch on his wrist. You expected him to be a bully, or perhaps an old-school type who is borderline misogynistic with an ego problem. He’s neither. He’s a former finance guy with a big belly, and a huge but friendly voice. He’s got a thinning head of grey hair and an accent that makes “escapement” sound like “excapement.” He calls himself “a city boy with an astonishingly good bullshit radar.” If you mixed DNA from Perezcope, The Wolf of Wall Street, and threw in the non-annoying parts of Ben Clymer, you’d probably end up with Geoffrey.
Are there any non-annoying parts of Ben Clymer?