EP.37: The Gift of Noticing – Why Stillness Unlocks the Truth About Who You Are

Do you ever feel like something’s missing—but you can’t quite name it?

This short and gentle episode is your reminder to slow down, breathe, and notice what’s already inside you. Bobbi shares a powerful story from a recent Be Still Collective call that illustrates how stillness, journaling, and simple daily reflection can help you remember the parts of yourself you’ve buried under the weight of responsibility and noise.

You don’t need a perfect notebook, a quiet house, or something profound to say.

You just need a few minutes.

This episode is for the woman who’s ready to come home to herself—one small, still moment at a time.

Hi everyone! 

Welcome back to the Be Still With Bobbi podcast.

This week’s episode is short on purpose—because sometimes, the most powerful insights come when we slow down, quiet the noise, and just… notice.

That’s what we’re talking about today.

This past week inside The Be Still Collective, I gave my group a simple but powerful assignment: 

A handful of questions. The same ones, repeated each day.
Not to force a breakthrough.
Not to craft a beautiful journal entry.
But simply… just to notice.

Because that’s what journaling really is. It’s not about writing something profound.
It’s about paying attention.

And I’ll tell you what I told them:

You don’t have to make meaning out of everything you write down right away.
You don’t even have to know what it means at all.
You just have to start noticing.
Noticing your thoughts and your reactions.
Noticing what energizes you and what drains you.
What feels aligned, and what doesn’t.
And what you’re longing for, even if you haven’t said it out loud yet.

We’re so used to living in response mode that we don’t even realize how much of our lives are lived on autopilot. But when you sit down to write—even for just five minutes a day—you begin to see what’s really going on beneath the surface.

And the most amazing part?
You start to remember who you really are.

One of the women in the group sent a message on the group chat earlier this week that stopped me in my tracks. She said: “I just realized how much I miss painting. I almost majored in art in college. But I didn’t. It didn’t feel like the responsible choice. So I chose something else. But I want to go back to it. I want to start painting again.” 

That’s it. That’s the power of stillness.

She didn’t get there by making a list of goals. She didn’t get there by planning out her next 10 years. She got there by giving herself space. By noticing what was trying to bubble up. And by listening to the voice she hadn’t heard in a really long time.

I love this—not because I think she now needs to double down and become a full-time artist, but because it highlights something we so often miss:

When we allow ourselves white space—time to breathe and listen without judgment—we never know what might bubble up.

In the stillness, we are gently reminded of who we’ve been all along. Before the expectations. Before the roles. Before the pressure to be practical.

This is the quiet miracle of journaling. Not that it demands answers but that it creates space for answers to rise.

And here’s what I want to make sure you hear today:

You don’t need to write the perfect sentence.
You don’t need a beautiful journal or a 30-minute time block or even a quiet house.
You just need to show up.

Because journaling isn’t about pushing yourself.
It doesn’t require effort—it just requires presence.
It’s not a task to conquer—it’s a space to return to.
It’s not something to get right—it’s something to come back to.
It’s not about doing more—it’s about making space.
It doesn’t demand performance—it invites permission.
And it doesn’t ask more from you—
…it offers you more of you.

This practice is here for you—whenever you’re ready. No striving required.

Because once you sit long enough to let your mind settle, something beautiful happens.
Your heart will eventually speak up. It always does.

When we stop filling every blank space with noise, something inside of us will speak.

And when it does, it’s usually not new. It’s ancient and familiar. It’s that gentle whisper saying: “Hey… I’m still here. Remember me?”

The truth is, most of us left parts of ourselves behind years ago—because we were trying to be responsible. Because we thought we had to. Because someone else said, it was a better path.
And now, we find ourselves mid-life, slightly restless, slightly off-center, wondering why we feel like something’s missing.

But the beauty is – it’s not too late.
Stillness lets you return to the you who got buried along the way.
Not to rewrite your whole life.
But to reintegrate those pieces of you into the life you now have.

So here’s my gentle nudge for you today:

Don’t wait until you have a free hour and a beautiful notebook and the perfect pen.
Just start with what you have.
Create a small pocket of stillness.
And write.

Even if it feels mundane.
Even if you’re just recording what happened yesterday or what’s on your mind.
Eventually, your heart will take the mic.
And when it does, let it speak.

Because your soul has something to say.
And it’s not asking for perfection.
It’s asking for your presence.

Before we wrap up today’s episode, if you’re curious about the questions that I posed in this week’s Collective call, I put them into a downloadable PDF for you to give them a try on your own. 

This free resource is called The Journaling Guide for Daily Clarity and is a simple, repeatable practice of daily reflection questions.

If you’re new to journaling or just want a fresh way to approach it, this guide is a beautiful place to begin. You can download it anytime at bestillwithbobbi.com/guide. I hope it brings a little more peace and insight into your everyday life.

I’ll be back next week with a new episode but until then…
Find five minutes.
Breathe.
Notice.
Write.
And let your heart remind you of who you’ve always been.

Bye for now.

Download Bobbi’s free journaling resource at bestillwithbobbi.com/guide.