Janice Villanueva: Mastering the Mind

Mindfulness and meditation have allowed Mommy Mundo Founder Janice Villanueva to navigate an external world shaken by the tides of a pandemic. 

The pandemic is as much a mental health issue as it is physical. Since the outbreak, anxiety, stress and depression has accompanied endless days spent on lockdown. This holds especially true for parents whose constant worries are the safety and wellbeing of their children. Mommy Mundo Founder Janice Villanueva states, “My main struggle was clinging to the past and projecting to the future.” She adds that as parents, setting goals and plans are to be expected. Learning to detach from outcome, however, has opened up more lessons and opportunities for mom and entrepreneur. 

The Art of Letting Go

Janice admits that letting go and trusting that things will fall into place is easier said than done. “It wasn’t easy, but once we learn it, it works like magic. When we let go of the “buts, should-haves and could-haves”, we make room for acceptance and faith. We replace fear and worries with peace and calm in our lives.” Meditation has helped Janice in her journey towards serenity and acceptance. It has also supported her when plans for her company were disrupted by the pandemic. She remembers, “When I left Manila, my team at Mommy Mundo was ready to stage our annual line up of more than 40+ events for moms and families nationwide, and in a snap, everything was put on hold and eventually canceled.”

Transitioning into something new

With clarity and an open mind, she and her team navigated the new normal. They shifted online, which opened even more doors for the community. “In a way, our pivot was a blessing as our event attendance multiplied. Our reach grew as well since digital has no limits compared to on-ground events. When we take off our blinders of fear and limitations, we find the silver lining.” 

Major transitions of relocating to a new home in Canada was also reason to tune inwards.  “We moved to Canada the day before lockdowns in Manila,” explains Janice. And while the tides of her external world were formidable, Janice chose to master her mind. “Meditation and breathwork has been my saving grace this pandemic. The practice centers me and allows me to pause, tame the ‘monkey mind.’ It teaches me to let go of things I cannot control.” 

Living with Mindfulness

She shares the joys of mindfulness practice with her eldest son. “This is something we discuss often. We also motivate each other to go deeper into our practice,” she details. In their new home, her brood also relishes in the fact that “we are stuck with people we like and love.” Family activities ring in laughter despite long days of being cooped up. It’s in waking up each day with sense of gratitude that allows them to see the silver lining through stormy days. Janice ends, “A wise person once said, ‘If we change the way we view things, the things we view change. The quality of our thoughts determines the quality of our days—and our lives as a whole.”

As seen on Modern Parenting: The 100 List Anniversary Print Issue available on OMG Newsstands on Lazada and Shopee. Digital copies are also available through Magzter, PressReader, Readly, and Zinio.

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