Being Inspired by Millennial Influencer Gabriel M Padilla
Gabriel M Padilla is originally Cuban-American from a small town in Southern Oregon. He currently has more than 300,000 followers across Instagram handles @GabrielMPadilla and @WithRoxy, an account about his dog Roxy that he co-manages with his Finnish girlfriend, Monica Landén.
For those who already know Gabriel as a social media influencer, and for those who stumble across his Instagram, Gabriel’s early struggles aren’t apparent at all. Gabriel M Padilla’s grandparents emigrated to the United States with a desire for a better life. His father was raised to believe you can achieve or become anything that you set your mind to, and so Gabriel was raised in a similar manner. Gabriel was quick to realize that not everybody deals with the same advantages or disadvantages, but due to his positive upbringing, Gabriel is a visionary. He often wondered, “If that person is capable of doing or achieving this, then why can’t I?”.
Gabriel M Padilla picked up on social media when he noticed the trend was booming and abandoned his successful modeling career in Los Angeles to pursue the new wave of media. His career development grew in ways he never would have imagined if he had stayed within his boundaries.
3 Values that Inspired Gabriel M Padilla’s Career Shift from Modeling to Social Media:
- Freedom
Freedom is Gabriel’s top core value in life over everything else. In his perspective, what good is money if you don’t have the time or capability to enjoy it? He certainly makes a point!
According to Gabriel, “I’d rather live my life on my own terms and struggle to afford certain things I’d like than to feel chained to a desk or even a life that I don’t enjoy!”. Before being able to have his own apartment with Monica in Los Angeles, he used to live with 4 roommates in a cramped 2-bedroom apartment right in the center of Hollywood during his challenging modeling days.
His transition from modeling to social media has allowed him to live the life that he has envisioned for himself as an entrepreneur. He is also blessed with the ultimate millennial lifestyle that many dreams of – he has the freedom and flexibility to create a well-balanced life between work and leisure, as well as spend time pursuing his dreams of traveling the world with his girlfriend Monica and their dog, Roxy.
- Self-Appreciation
Gabriel believes that if you don’t truly know and love yourself, then you will always suffer from internal conflict. This is why self-care and self-appreciation are highly valued by Gabriel. Although shifting his career from modeling to social media was not an easy task to do, especially with no guaranteed safety net, he was still able to push through with all the determination and his self-belief that he can achieve.
- Empathy
The world could be a much better place if people had more empathy and understanding to go around, according to Gabriel. He believes that evil is defined as the absence of empathy. Dale Carnegie’s book, How To Win Friends and Influence People has moved Gabriel with the quote, “There but by the grace of God go I”. When we see people in unfortunate circumstances, we should never be quick to judge, since we could have been in that situation itself should we have endured the same struggles or experiences as they. Gabriel’s values stand by not judging others because you never really know the environment and circumstances that led them to their current situation.
The same could be applied to Gabriel, by looking at his Instagram, one can quickly assume all the success and notoriety was simply handed to him. Little do people really know the amount of hard work that Gabriel had to put to get to where he is in the present day. Gabriel M Padilla took a chance when he moved at the age of 18 years old from Grants Pass, Oregon to Los Angeles to pursue his modeling career. However, his circumstances have allowed him to realize that social media was going to take over the modeling industry, which led him to take a leap of faith.
To follow Gabriel and his family, check their Instagram: