Interview with María José Padillo on Lifestyle and Wellness

In this exclusive interview, we speak with María José Padillo, an influencer and coach passionate about wellness and personal growth. María José shares her story, her daily routines, and the experiences that have led her to balance her role as a businesswoman with creating content on social media. From her workday at Obrador San Andrés to her commitment to self-care and love for coaching, we discover how she manages to stay inspired in every part of her life.

What do you do for a living? What is your day-to-day like?

Honestly, I do a mix of things. My main and steady job is at the business I have with my parents, Obrador San Andrés. A few years ago, we started a cookie factory. I moved to Madrid to sell cookies door-to-door, and now I manage sales in Madrid and other areas of Spain.

On the other hand, I spend a lot of time on my hobbies, which I’ve managed to turn into an extra source of income, although irregularly.

These hobbies I’m talking about involve creating content on social media (TikTok, Instagram, and a podcast) about lifestyle and personal growth, as well as coaching. Thanks to this, I get opportunities to work with brands by creating content for my profiles or theirs, going to events that allow me to have amazing experiences, and doing coaching sessions with clients.

My days are quite varied, but as much as possible, I try to keep a routine. Some days, I visit clients, go to an event, work from home on my computer, make a lot of calls, film videos for collaborations, do cookie tastings, interview someone for the podcast, or do a session with a coaching client. I think those cover all the options, and depending on what’s scheduled, they combine in different ways throughout my day.

What makes you get up every day and do what you do?

I get up every day because I’m excited about what I do. I think having excitement for what you do is crucial and the key to almost everything. Maybe you’re not thrilled with a particular task—in fact, I don’t enjoy making phone calls to talk to clients, for example—but I’m excited about the outcome I’ll get when we finish what we’re working on together. I look toward the future to stay motivated, connect with the idea of what something could become, and envision how I’ll feel when something in the present succeeds. I think I connect with a sense of personal fulfillment and progress, to put it one way.

Another super important thing I don’t want to leave out is that we have the power to find our own motivation. Often, it comes naturally, but many times it doesn’t. There are stages when we feel down or can’t see the point of what we’re doing, and I believe we need to know how to find what excites us about what we’re doing (whether it’s work, projects, personal challenges, etc.). There may be a time when we’re not convinced by how we’re spending our time, and that’s okay. We must remember that life is full of changes, both outward and inward—we’re not linear. And if we don’t find excitement today, we need to be patient, learn from ourselves during those lows, and keep trying to find it because sooner or later, it comes.

Since you work in coaching, do you have any daily rituals or routines to care for your mental and emotional well-being?

Journaling, reading, and exercise. They’re the three pillars that keep me connected to myself. Every morning, I write and share things with myself: how I feel, what I think, the stance I want to take on a topic... It helps me immensely to reflect and organize and clarify my thoughts. But I think journaling is often associated with only putting down all the negative things in our minds on paper. For me, it’s a conversation with myself, one where I put order and intention, celebrate achievements, and analyze a specific aspect I want to examine a bit closer.

Reading is present every day in the morning while I have a coffee and before bed. Starting the day with a book instead of getting hooked on social media helps me stay focused on what I need to do in the morning. It’s the same when I’m about to sleep. Reading for a while helps me disconnect from everything and everyone, makes me feel very calm, and I notice I sleep much better than when I go to bed looking at a screen. I always keep a book on my bedside table—usually one on personal growth or coaching, along with a romance novel.

As for exercise, it’s a time when I feel that everything is under control. It’s just me and my body. I always say this, and I know it may sound strange, but I enjoy feeling how my body works and my muscles engage. Also, it’s important for me to feel good physically, and exercise, obviously, plays a fundamental role in this.

These three things are so deeply integrated into my life that I feel at home when I do any of them. In fact, when I have something that makes me a bit nervous or need to spend a few days away from home (something I don’t particularly enjoy, even if it’s for leisure), I always bring a notebook for journaling or a book to read. I remember when I went to Liverpool just after the borders reopened post-pandemic, my priority was being in a place with a gym. And although it may seem like I wanted it to live there as someone who just can’t give up exercise, it was actually to feel at home in a foreign country where I was alone, in a different language, and with the risk of catching the virus and ending up in the hospital. While exercising, I feel at peace with myself.

How important is rest in your daily life? What practices help you sleep better? Do you have any nighttime routine to unwind before bed?

Rest is super important to me, and I try to stick to a regular bedtime and dedicate some time to reading. My routine consists of putting my home in “night mode,” as I call it. Dim lights, less noise, a nice dinner, a cup of tea, applying my skincare, and then I get into bed. I believe creating a calmer environment really helps slow down, especially mentally, and leads to better sleep.

I try to keep this routine most days, but if I go out to dinner or have an event during the week and get home later than usual, the one thing I never skip is my skincare and reading moment, no matter the time.

What are your favorite candle scents? What kind of fragrance do you look for when choosing a candle?

I love scents of white flowers like jasmine. I also like fresh and clean scents. In both candles and perfumes, I look for these types of scents. Some people adore candles with very sweet scents, like the traditional Christmas cinnamon and apple ones. I enjoy them for a while when I’m elsewhere, but you won’t see me buying candles like that and having that scent 24/7.

What’s the best advice you’ve been given about self-care or well-being?

You are the most important thing you have. It may seem separate from self-care and well-being, but it really isn’t. We are the most important thing we have in life, and our main mission is to take the best care of ourselves. How? By resting, eating well, choosing carefully the people we spend our time with, cultivating real relationships, going to therapy or a coach, exercising, being patient with ourselves, nurturing our mind and spirit (for those of us who are spiritual like me)...

It reminds me of a phrase my friend Ana said yesterday in an interview for my podcast: “I am happy to do things; I don’t do things to be happy.” And I think that happiness is about taking care of yourself, to be at 100%, with energy and the desire to do a thousand things and enjoy them.

What would you recommend to someone looking to incorporate healthier or more relaxing habits into their daily life?

Keep in mind that the most important thing in your life is yourself. And this includes taking care of your physical and mental health. Try different habits until you find the ones that suit your lifestyle and preferences, and when time passes and you evolve as a person, and you see that those habits no longer fit, start that search again. Even habits need to be changed as we and our needs change.