TAGS: SIDE-PROJECT I PHILOSOPHY ON INSTAGRAM
''When you reflect, you realize your shortcomings. And that is a terrible feeling 😊 But it’s not about overthinking yourself, it’s just about looking in the mirror, being honest and trying to improve''. Viktor's Artistic Philosophy Instagram posts are followed by 14.8k curious people! And as another philosophy fan, I was very curious to meet him 👇
Just why? How did you start?
A year prior to my page I got into philosophy. I realized that the way I looked at the world was insufficient and that I was pretty blind. I grew up in a religious family and up until that point, most of what I believed came from my parents and my pastor. Then one day there was a person talking about thinking for yourself and it made me consider how I want to live my life. And how at the end of it I want to have pursued what was important to me.
This is when I started reading about philosophy and I just got hooked. I was watching videos, reading books, and every time I met someone, philosophy was on my mind. I talked about it a lot and my friends got a bit bored. Which is understandable 😊 So I also kept it to myself and did some reflections but the urge to share my ideas was still there. And I also loved content creation.
So I thought I will create a community where people can share ideas as well. And if they disagree, they disagree. And then we can have a chat or a debate or something. And that’s how it started..
Take us back to the time when you published your first post...
I started during Covid and had the page for two weeks untouched. Then the first thing I posted was about the school system and I felt afraid. I was scared that random strangers will now know what I think and at the same time, I was also a bit like, wow, okay :)
Sometimes when I stumble upon my old posts I get a bit embarrassed. Nowadays, when I write essays and reflections, I make them a bit more intellectual and professional. In the first stages, it was more of a conversation and my literal thoughts. I believe I have improved a lot since then.
What about the choice of name Artistic Philosophy?
I used to look at pictures and paintings on Pinterest for my page and they really spoke to me. I realized that the quote can describe the painting and the painting can also describe the quote. And there's this constant, I would say dance between the quote and the picture. And this is how the name was born - artistic philosophy.
Ready to play a game? Yes!
Ida: Choose a number from 1-3 and 1-9.
Viktor: 3 and 9
Ida: Now scroll 3 times and choose post #9. What post did you get? 👇
What was the message that you wanted to share with us with this quote?
This quote was influenced by Jordan Peterson, Nietzsche and Carl Jung. Carl Jung had this idea of the shadow. Shadow is that malevolent part of you, the things that you don't want to confront. However, we need to realize that we are not only rainbows and butterflies and that we also have this darker part of ourselves that needs to be addressed in order for us not to stay naive. The shadow should be confronted and not suppressed.
What supports you to keep creating?
I think what I do is valuable. And I like to think that it also gives me meaning. Sometimes I don't have an idea of what to post or what to write about. But I also keep a notebook and write down ideas as they come. So I do sometimes need discipline but I remind myself that it’s not like I forced myself to do this, it’s my choice and what I want to do.
What is advice that you would give to somebody who would like to start an Instagram page?
You need to do what you love. The other thing is you have to have patience. For instance, my page started growing exponentially, in December 2021. That’s one and a half years later!
Initially, I didn't look much into how to grow Instagram. I just did what I thought was okay: I was in a group chat where you support each other, I used hashtags, and I followed other people who were an audience of other philosophy accounts. Group support is good at the beginning but it’s not a very authentic growth. With hashtags, my advice would be to aim for the mid-range and not the super-popular ones. Finally, the tactic I would recommend is to search and follow the people who are interested in your topic and follow similar pages as yours.
My progress was not linear, it was more exponential. I can say that the more followers you have, it's just going to get better. You just need the patience to get to a level until Instagram puts your posts on the Explore page. For instance, my page skyrocketed for two months. Once my posts were on the Explorer page, in January 2021, I received 8000 followers!
And of course, it’s most important to have good quality. Overall, if you want to start an Instagram page you need to realize that you are creating content and not attention.
What simple ideas do we need right now for a better world?
I think it's a bit cheesy, but we need more love. If you are loving on the inside, you cannot act unlovingly on the outside. Or if you are happy inside and at peace, it is less likely that you will act in a way that would hurt other people.
I also think we need reflection. When you reflect, you realize your shortcomings. And that is a terrible feeling 😊 But it’s not about overthinking yourself, it’s about just looking in the mirror, being honest and trying to improve. We are interconnected people and what I do has an impact on others. So if I'm showing a good example, they might try it.
People have this resistance in them, like a rebellion towards others telling them what to do. They don't like to be controlled or under surveillance, and no wonder, I don't think that's the way to go. You need to have self-motivation and only then you can look a bit beyond on how to help others and your community.
What is your next step?
Soon, I would like to monetize my page by sharing paintings of contemporary painters. From my experience, the painters today don't get enough recognition. And since I feel very passionate about art I want to share their work with my followers. And also make it easy for them to buy the art.
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P.S. Find Viktor's Artistic Philosophy here.
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