Tom Brady Tries to 'Treasure Every Second' With His Family: 'Prioritize the Things You Love'

Tom Brady may not be ready to retire from the NFL just yet, but he has mastered the art of work-life balance.

“Time is so valuable and it’s so easy to forget how quickly it can pass us by,” the 41-year-old New England Patriots quarterback and father to John, 11, Benjamin, 9, and Vivian, 6, tells PEOPLE exclusively while announcing his latest role as IWC Schaffhausen’s new global brand ambassador. “I try to keep that in mind, because it reminds you to prioritize the things you love. We don’t live forever, so we need to make the most of our time.”

Even though he can’t wear a watch on the field, taking advantage of the time he spends with wife Gisele Bündchen and three kids is always on his mind.

“I love my family so much and I love what I do for a living so much [that] I never, ever want to take those things for granted and I really try to treasure every second,” Brady says.

With his packed training schedule and focus on his family, Brady only has time to partner with brands that are organic to his lifestyle and mean something to him. So as a watch collector, his decision to partner with IWC Schaffhausen as the new global brand ambassador was an easy one.

“I’ve always been a huge fan of IWC — in college, I actually had an IWC watch as my screensaver,” he tells PEOPLE. “So I guess you could say it’s been a long time coming! They’ve done some incredible things over the years and to be a part of the IWC family is a great honor for me.”

Long before his partnership, he has always had a fascination for how watches work. So for Brady, wearing a watch is in his style DNA.

“I’m pretty much always wearing a watch,” he adds. “Football is the only thing that kind of gets in the way of that. I’ve been into watches for so long, it almost feels weird not to have one on at this point. I enjoy the quick moment each morning when I’m picking out which one I’ll wear that day.”

His go-to watch? IWC Schaffhausen’s pilot black chronograph top gun. “I love the look and feel of it — it’s very sporty and versatile,” he says of the top gun. For more formal occasions, Brady says he opts for the portugieser, which features a leather alligator strap.

“With IWC especially, we’re talking about works of art made possible by an engineering process that’s been perfected for over 150 years,” the Patriots quarterback says.

Since working with the legacy watch brand, he has learned a few lessons – both inspiring to him and anyone trying to create something of their own.

Brady says, “In order to become great, it requires a tremendous amount of discipline, determination and hard work. And IWC exemplifies that.”