Willow Older & D.
Founders, Today I Noticed mindfulness and authors, Today I Noticed: A Little Book of Mindfulness that Will Change the Way You See the World at Today I Noticed
Health, Wellness and Fitness
Education: UC Berkeley and University of Vermont - Stanford University and Bread Loaf School of English at Middlebury College
San Francisco, CA, USA
Biography
Willow Older and Deborah Huber are the founders of the Today I Noticed mindfulness practice and authors of Today I Noticed: A Little Book of Mindfulness that Will Change the Way You See the World (Blue Star Press with Penguin Random House, 2023). They co-facilitate in-person and virtual Today I Noticed workshops for conferences, retreats, and for teams of all sizes.
In addition to Today I Noticed, Willow runs her own editorial services business. An internationally published journalist, she develops strategic content marketing and digital campaigns for a wide range of clients including ad agencies, global organizations, coaching and leadership companies, and a variety of other small- and medium-sized businesses.
Willow holds an M.A. from the Bread Loaf School of English at Middlebury College (English Literature) and a B.A. from the University of Vermont (English Literature). She’s a self-taught artist who grew up on the South Island of New Zealand. Willow is a determined knitter who tries hard to make her mistakes look like they’re part of the pattern.
Deborah has spent her career in the tech industry in a variety of creative and management roles. She has led multi-disciplinary teams in developing digital products for a broad range of companies, including Marvel Comics, The Late Show, Apple, Ford Motor Company, AOL, HarperCollins, IBM, and Nissan Europe.
Deborah holds an M.A. from Stanford University and a B.A. from U.C. Berkeley. She writes children's novels and dreams of joining the cold-water plunging rage by taking a daily swim in the chilly S.F. Bay (but knows she never will).
Passion
One of our favorite topics is how everyone can benefit from a mindfulness practice—especially one that can be instantly incorporated into your daily life (no meditation pillow required!). That’s why our presentations include an interactive segment for participants to create their own “TIN” (a short, written description and quick sketch about an observation) and then share it with the group. As presenters, it’s deeply rewarding to witness the palpable “a-ha” moment of mindfulness, creativity, and connection that Today I Noticed inspires, whether during an in-person or virtual presentation and with small groups or large conferences.
I am willing to travel
More than 100 miles
When it comes to payments
I generally get paid for speaking but make exceptions
Topics
Best Story
Today I Noticed, a mindfulness practice and book based on paying attention, came about because we weren’t paying attention! In our workshops, we talk about the irony of showing up to see a museum exhibit only to find the museum was closed that day—a small but important detail we’d known if we’d been paying attention. Rather than go home, we decided to take an urban walking tour of downtown San Francisco while intentionally noticing little moments that are easy to miss. By the end of the day, we felt excited, nourished, and grateful—and “Today I Noticed” was born. The rest, as they say, is history.
Origin Story
Today I Noticed began as a private, two-person conversation about the power and goodness of paying attention. We soon realized that other people would enjoy and benefit from discovering our simple yet transformational approach to daily mindfulness. To test our theory, we shared our “TINs” (that’s what we call our Today I Noticed posts) on Instagram. In short order, followers from around the world responded with comments like, “I noticed that, too!” “I feel the same way!” and “I do that, too!” Buoyed by this sense of connection and community, we’ve been spreading the word about Today I Noticed ever since—through our mindfulness workshops, our book, podcast and media interviews, and even a forthcoming daily desk calendar.