I read about people getting frustrated with their Apple Watches, reporting feeling “bullied” to close their rings. Like most things in life, the intention doesn’t always match the feedback. Uplifting words can feel like pressure for some. Of course your watch is not programmed to chastise you or curse you if you don’t close your rings. The watch tracks your movement. It sends you words of encouragement such as you can still do it if the day’s about to end. And when you’re behind on your usual activity, you get a notification to check your rings.
The great thing about technology is that you’re the boss. Our gadgets don’t complain. They don’t need a day off, just time to recharge, and they don’t judge you. And your Apple Watch does not intend to bully you. But if notifications, reminders, and the rings are pissing you off, you can turn off notifications for them. Here’s how:
- Go to the Apple Watch App
- Activity
- Turn off Notifications That Don’t Serve You
The frustration reminds me of a quote from author James Clear on X:
Technology can be used mindlessly or mindfully. The key is to put it to work for you rather than getting pushed around by it.
Pros and Cons
I love my Apple Watch, not only for the rings and tracking, but it allows me to walk around this world without my phone. This alone is worth it. It’s convenient for taking notes and calls. Does it make me feel good when I close all my rings? Yes. Am I bummed out if I don’t? No. Do I do jumping jacks at 11:55 PM at night just to close my rings? No.
If you are one of those who feel bullied by the Apple Watch, use this opportunity to learn how to take control of your gadgets. Of course, this can mean completely ditching your watch, but if you do find benefits from it, then problem-solve mindfully. Doing so is a great decision-making exercise. We live in a world embedded in technology. The Apple Watch is the tip of the iceberg. We will all come across these types of decision-making situations in our lives. Use this opportunity to mindfully integrate technology in your life.
3 Ways to Make the Apple Watch Work for You
Reasonable Goals: You are in control of what you need to do to close all three rings. If you get a high from seeing the rings close, if that is really your goal, then you can set up your goals to a minimum. The Apple Watch lets you change your goals anytime and even lets you change your goals for the day. This allows you to close your rings and feel a sense of accomplishment and also track your movements.
Try this as a daily goal for one month:
- 100 calories: move goal
- 10 minutes of exercise: exercise goal
- 3 hours of standing: stand goal
Use this as a base and build up from here if you choose.
Another option is to have Strategic Reasonable Goals. This is what I have set up for myself. Overtime, I have figured out the optimum goals for me. These goals are not random. I have come to realize that dedicating a certain amount of time to moving and working out improves my sleep. I eat better and I feel good. For me, 45 minutes of yoga with 20 minutes of strength/HIIT workout is what I need to complete my move target.
One way to set your move target is figure out how much time you can reasonably workout and how many calories you burn from it. That’s your move goal. If you wear your watch throughout the day, then the extra movement you do should be enough to get you over your move target.
Mindset: If you want to keep your current goals, but don’t want to feel bullied, choose one ring to close for that week. I find that the exercise goal is the one you have the most control, since it’s time based. You can do gentle yoga and still close this ring.
The Goal Is Overall Health Monitoring
Tim Cook, in The Table Manners Podcast talks about how the Apple Watch saved his father’s life. I remember when my mom told me that her watch told her to sit down and rest and then realized that her blood pressure was very high. She doesn’t really know all the features and bells and whistles of the watch, and mainly uses it to tell time, but that alert, she understood.
To those ditching their watches because they feel bullied, I hope you find a way to take control of your watch and use it to serve you. As we interact more with AI and software, remember that your watch is not designed to hurt your feelings, quite the opposite.
