An accurate pulse count also lets you know when you've accelerated your heart rate enough to start burning off that banana split during exercise. That may sound like a lot of anatomic vocab to retain, but those are just your options.
Most people are able to detect a pulse on the carotids or the radial arteries.
Raise your thumb slightly skyward, as if holding an apple or a tennis ball, to create a small pocket under your thumb at the top of your wrist. Your fingers should lay across the tendon running down your arm. Adjust your fingertips until you can feel a steady beat under the skin of your wrist. If you've searched high and low, yet the thump-thump on your wrist remains ever elusive, try finding your carotid artery instead. The best way is the easiest one for you, and for some people, neck pulse points are stronger and more accessible.