Hardly anyone actually prefers a scratched up watch to a pristine one, so it’s definitely not like you’re wrong to feel that way. But of course, the only way to avoid scratching a watch is to never wear it. The trick is just to accept that it’s gonna happen (and happen again, and again, and…) and try to look at it as getting your money’s worth out of the watch: it’s not a delicate, expensive bauble that you bought to admire—if that’s what you want, you might as well just save your money and drop by the watch dealer and stare at it once in a while—it’s a thing you own and wear and use. Anytime you use anything, it’s gonna leave a mark, both metaphorically and literally.

It is worth keeping in mind when buying a watch, though. Whenever I see a beautiful, gleaming watch with all polished surfaces and wide steel bezels, I remind myself, “this watch will look like that for a month, tops.” Before you buy a watch, maybe check out used watch listings and see if you still like it when it’s been banged up a bit. Because yours will look like that eventually. Does it still look good? Do the scratches and dings give it “character,” or does it just look like a beat-up watch?