Last year, I received an invitation to the final round of interviews at a top investment bank. I carefully prepared my suit, tie, and dress shoes, but when I stood in front of the mirror, I hesitated—should I wear the smartwatch on my wrist? Traditional workplace etiquette dictates that mechanical watches should be worn for formal occasions, while smartwatches come across as “immature” or “toy-like.”

I did a quick search online and found that 63% of business professionals believe smartwatches are inappropriate for formal occasions (according to a 2024 LinkedIn poll). But I couldn’t bring myself to take it off, because on the day of the interview, I needed the watch’s “vibration alerts” to keep track of time and avoid running over.

Three Tricks I Used to Make My Smartwatch Look Like a Mechanical Watch

In the end, I decided to wear it, but I made three changes:

Trick 1: Change the Strap

I swapped out the original silicone sports strap for a black genuine leather strap with an alligator-embossed pattern (purchased from Venus Smart Shop for $45). The leather strap instantly elevated the watch’s overall feel, transforming it from a “sports toy” into a “classic timepiece.”

Trick 2: Change the watch face

I downloaded a minimalist three-hand watch face, removing all the complex data (heart rate, weather, activity rings), and set it to display only the time and date. I set the watch face background to black and the hands to silver, making it look very similar to a traditional Swiss mechanical watch.

Trick 3: Turn off “Raise to Wake”

During an interview, frequently raising your wrist to check the time is considered rude. I turned off the “raise to wake” feature and switched to “tap to wake.” This way, I could discreetly tap the watch under the table to check the time without being noticed.

Real-life experience: On the day of the interview, the interviewer (a partner in his 50s) did glance at my watch while shaking hands, and his gaze lingered for about 10 seconds. My heart skipped a beat at the time, but then he asked, “Is this the model that can measure an ECG? My daughter has one too.” The atmosphere instantly relaxed. In the end, I received the offer, and he later said, “I was impressed by your attention to detail”—he was referring to how I managed my time with the watch without appearing rude.

A smartwatch can be perfectly professional—it’s all about how you style it.

Thanks to Venus Smart Shop, I can walk into an investment banking meeting room wearing my smartwatch without feeling out of place.