Instagram strategy right now feels like this weird middle ground where many people & coaches are rebelling against the traditional “grid aesthetic” recommendations. They’re acknowledging how it’s an extremely perfectionistic approach.
That’s awesome.
And.
There are people (like me) who can’t just be told “don’t stress about your grid. Post whatever you want!”
We’re still going to stress about it…
If hearing that your IG grid doesn’t have to have any kind of set pattern, aesthetic, or order is all you need to feel free and validated with posting content, awesome. Run free wild one! Yes!!!
If you’re like me and you hear that advice and it doesn’t set you running through a magical field of daisies posting without a care, it’s not your fault and there’s nothing wrong with you.
Here’s the deal - having an order or set aesthetic for your grid can be a functional tool for content creators.
And remember - tools are neutral. They themselves don’t have to be “good” or “bad.” They’re meant to serve a function.
So our question is - does having a pattern for your grid serve you?
Here’s one example of how it could be a functional, supportive tool for someone:
A content creator who experiences analysis paralysis and overwhelm deciding what to post when they open Instagram. If their content goes in an order, either by topic, color, pattern, day of the week, or something else, that decision is made for them, and that’s one less thing they have to decide in this process of posting content.
For me personally, I just like playing around with my grid! I find it fun, creative, and like a puzzle. And I love puzzles.
Content creation can be extremely simplified, but even still it is a multi step process with multiple decisions to be made. That can be overwhelming and taxing to people with ADHD, depression, anxiety, chronic illness, brain fog, and much more.
Eliminating the structure of a grid pattern might be the thing that releases overwhelm for one creator.
But using that pattern to have decisions made ahead of time could be the approach that does it for another.
So, with that in mind, here are some permission slips for low energy content creators all about your IG grid. Take which ones serve you and leave the rest.
Permission granted to not care about how your Instagram
grid looks.
Permission granted to use your Instagram grid aesthetic as a way to help you keep posting.
Permission granted to switch up how your Instagram feed looks, even if you've used one pattern for a long time.
You have something meaningful to share with the world.
Social media is an effective way of doing that.
Let’s use it in a way that doesn’t burn you out by validation your needs + unique creative process.