I heard from my grandmother that giving clocks is bad luck because it means counting down someone's lifespan. But does that apply if you give electronic clocks or smartwatches too? Or is the superstition only about mechanical ones?
Do you believe in superstitions about gifts? It's just an old superstition that gets passed down from generation to generation, but there's no magic in watches. If you want to give someone a watch - go ahead and give it, it's a useful and often beautiful thing! The superstition, of course, traditionally applies specifically to mechanical watches, but that's just as logical as believing a black cat brings bad luck - just a nice story, not reality.
Do you actually believe in superstitions yourself, or are you just curious? I'm not really into superstitions, but I've noticed that people react to gifts based on emotions rather than logic. When I gave a watch to a friend - she grimaced at first because of the superstition, but she ended up wearing it anyway and is happy with it. I think if someone's skeptical, the superstition won't work, but if they believe in it - it's better to give them something else and not strain the relationship. In practice, the type of watch doesn't matter (mechanical, electronic, smart) - it's the same superstition regardless.
There's an old superstition about giving clocks, but really it's more of a psychological thing than actual magic. When someone knows about the "bad omen," they can't help but associate the gift with something sad, and that ruins the impression. But if you just give clocks without any preamble about time running out - they come across as a useful, practical gift, which is what they actually are.
As for the type of clock - the superstition supposedly "works" the same way for all kinds: mechanical, electronic, smartwatches, you name it. The logic is supposedly the same in all cases. But if you think about it, both regular watches and smartphones and any gadget tell time, and nobody gets all superstitious about giving a phone or tablet as a gift, even though they've got a clock face and a stopwatch. So it turns out the superstition is selective, which already shows how arbitrary it is.
Bottom line: if you don't believe in superstitions yourself - give clocks without worrying. But if the person you're giving it to is superstitious - you can play it safe: put a coin next to it so they can "buy back" the gift, or just explain beforehand that there's nothing bad about it. People usually care more about knowing you like them than about following some silly rules.
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