Instagram is not just a social networking app made for sharing photos and videos from a smartphone.

With nearly 1 billion monthly active users since June 2018 its audience is continually and steadily growing already ahead of  Twitter or Pinterest.

Still, behind Facebook regarding the number of users,

Instagram images though get an average of 23% more engagement

than their Facebook counterparts as well as a brand engagement that is 10 times higher.

A new way of doing business is born. 80% of users follow at least one brand on Instagram.

60% of users learn about new products through Instagram, and 30% of users say they’ve bought a product they discovered on Instagram.

No matter if you take your smartphone as a consumer or just for having fun, the rules of the game still applying and shaping the way you crave, you interact, and you build behavioral patterns.

These numbers speak about the incredible power of the tool.

But with globally 41 percent of users under 24 years old and awarded as the preferred social network of teens, there is reasonable growing surveillance of possible impacts of the network on well being and mental health.

In a recent survey conducted by RSPH and the Young Health Movement,  Instagram has been associated with high levels of anxiety, depression, bullying and the so-called “fear of missing out.”

Risks are also clearly related as every coin has two sides and it is vital to understand the functionalities and the rules of the machine to ensure the proper use of it.

To make it safe, you need to make it free. Social media can under no circumstance behave as a replacement for any human need.

As a powerful tool, it has the meaning of boosting and enabling, but it can never fulfill per sei independently.

Whatever it is missing in real life cannot be found, replace or improved through alternative mirror-like tools.

No social-media network neither Instagram will satisfy a wounded, weak or in need human heart and use it as an escape route from reality would potentially bring harmful outcomes for both you and those around you.

Opening any social media account should not be a reckless move but follow deliverable decision whether for fun or business.

Find a purpose, mission, and vision and follow some easy tips to enjoy a full, safe and productive Instagram ride at the service of positive mindset development.

1. Shout your message to the world

Having a clear sense in life bring a higher perspective to the path we walk. Sharing it with the outside world is actually what makes a positive impact. If you have a treasure, let others enjoy it too. If you found the way, help others to follow it. Be prone to inspire when you have a good reason for it. Having something to say and saying it respectfully will have a positive impact for others and will help you to strengthen it out.

2. Get inspired for better.

The mirror effect is a reflection of one’s self through the gaze of others. By going through different examples we consider positive of traces, behaviors or attitudes that we would like to imitate, we measure our own strengths and weaknesses and get the motivation to achieve better.

3. Unleash your most creative side.

It is quite common to be short on time what by extension kill the ground for innovation and creativity. By devoting efforts to a social way of communication that it is based on visual content, we force our inner artistic talents to search for grace and beauty.

4. It’s nice to be important. But it is more important to be nice. 

Be kind, be in balance. Take your Instagram profile as a tool to spread the importance of quality in human relations. Using the ‘like’bottom is a matter of seconds, and it can positively help others to feel valued and supported.

5. Build community

Community understood as a social unit of people that care for each other. Follow these colleagues from school that you do not see since 30 years ago, the profile of the small family-business bakery from your street, the work of this foundation that is especially close to your heart. See the person behind the account and be open to learn something from each minute of screen exposure.

6. Keep your album of great personal moments.

There is a vast difference between an artificial Instagram account portraying life as perfect and a positive account showing the perfect moments in life.

Life is not and will never be perfect. It passes by and makes history as a sequence of good and bad moments, successes and failures, victories and defeats.

Being ready for the light and the darkness makes the difference between happy and unhappy people.

Rely on and account the good moments instead of the bad ones makes the difference between positive and negative people.

Instagram can help to remember what really matters and keep you focused on the bright side of life.

Waking up every day early and sleepy is hard but leaving a footprint in life through the work we do taste sweet and satisfying.

Watching your kids grow wise and kind is one of the most rewarding things in life but accumulate non-accountable eye bags and tears.

Experiencing true love and keep it throughout life is what gives full sense to our story but requires a daily effort to overcome routine and develop a common project.

Everything good we do or we have, come associated with stable doses of sacrifice and devotion.

Keeping a positive profile that captures the nicest of these moments and check them regularly is a good tip to naturally remind ourselves why are we trying so hard when the clouds start blurring the horizon.