Every collector has one. The piece you hesitated on, the negotiation you walked away from, the auction you missed by minutes. Years later, you still think about it.
My Story
In 2008, a dealer offered me a Paul Newman Daytona for forty thousand dollars. This was before the current mania, but even then I knew the market was moving. The dial showed honest wear. The movement checked out. Everything about the watch felt right.
I tried to negotiate. He held firm. I left to think about it. The next morning, he called to say it had sold overnight to a Japanese collector.
Today that watch would bring half a million or more at auction. I have made money in watches since then, but nothing that compensates for that missed opportunity.
What Hesitation Costs
The lesson is not that every watch must be bought immediately. Rushing creates its own problems. But when something genuinely exceptional appears at a fair price, hesitation extracts penalties.
Great watches rarely stay available. Sellers know what they have. Other collectors recognize opportunity. The window between listing and sale shrinks constantly as information flows faster.
Moving Forward
I have learned to act decisively when conviction strikes. This does not mean buying recklessly — most pieces I consider never reach the decision point. But once I determine that a watch represents genuine value, I commit quickly.
Better to miss something ordinary than to hesitate on something exceptional.
