By Ken Hollow, professional manager of illusions and enthusiast of minimal effort
Let’s not lie to ourselves. We, the creators, the freelancers, the influencers — we’re tired. Burnt out. Scraping the bottom of the creativity barrel while pretending everything is “curated with care.”
So today’s sacred gospel is this: if no one’s reading (and trust me, they aren’t), you might as well phone it in properly. Here are my top 10 low-effort posts that still mysteriously pull in likes, engagement, and the occasional confused comment from an old coworker you forgot you followed.
1️⃣ The “Vague Aesthetic Photo” Post
A blurry coffee cup, half of your laptop, and maybe a plant. Caption: “Mornings like this… ☕🌿”
Effort: Took 10 seconds.
Result: 100 likes and three “love this vibe!” comments.
No one’s asking what mornings you mean. No one cares. They’re here to project their own burnout onto your photo.
2️⃣ The “Throwback to Literally Anything” Post
Old photo from 2021? Doesn’t matter. Post it. Caption: “Throwback to simpler times.”
Bonus: add a wistful emoji.
Effort: Zero, because you didn’t even leave the house to take it.
Pro tip: it doesn’t need to be a significant moment. The algorithm just sees “photo + wistfulness = relevance.”
3️⃣ The “Out-of-Context Screenshot” Post
Screenshot an old text, a half-written note, or an irrelevant headline. Caption: “This still hits.”
Effort: Less than scrolling TikTok for 5 minutes.
No one knows what it means, but they’ll like it anyway because it feels profound (it isn’t).
4️⃣ The “Obligatory Sunset” Post
Take a picture of the sky. Any sky. Doesn’t even have to be pretty. Caption: “Perspective.”
Effort: You literally pointed your phone up.
Likes guaranteed because apparently sunsets still count as “content” in 2025.
5️⃣ The “Cryptic Selfie with Zero Context” Post
A mirror selfie. Possibly blurry. Caption: “Learning. Growing. 🌱”
No explanation. No backstory.
Effort: Negative. You probably already had this in your camera roll.
It performs because people think you’re going through something and they want to show support (but they don’t really want to know what).
6️⃣ The “Random Meme You Didn’t Even Make” Post
Screenshot a meme from another platform. Caption: “Mood.”
Effort: Took longer to crop than it did to write the caption.
Still pulls engagement because memes are now cultural currency and nobody cares about originality.
7️⃣ The “Poll No One Asked For” Post
Throw up a poll with two random options: “Tea or coffee?” “Cats or dogs?” “Monday or Friday?”
Effort: Minimal.
Engagement: Weirdly high, because people can’t resist clicking buttons.
You get interaction stats without even having to upload a photo. Pure evil genius.
8️⃣ The “Repost of Your Own Tweet” Post
Take one mildly funny or mildly sad tweet you posted last week. Screenshot it. Post it as a square graphic on Instagram.
Caption: “Still true.”
Effort: Repackaging your mediocrity.
Engagement: Weirdly better than when you tweeted it in the first place.
9️⃣ The “Inspiration Quote Graphic” Post
Slap a generic inspirational quote onto a beige background. Example: “Do what you can, with what you have.” – Teddy Roosevelt or whatever.
Effort: Canva template + 45 seconds.
Results: Predictably solid because people like feeling motivated even when they’re lying in bed doomscrolling.
🔟 The “Pet Photo for No Reason” Post
If you own a pet (or can steal a photo of one), congratulations. You now have infinite low-effort content.
Caption: “Needed this today.”
Effort: Take photo / post / walk away.
Pet photos bypass the algorithm entirely and go straight to engagement heaven.
Final Thoughts (Because My Editor Likes Structure)
Look, none of this is a complaint. It’s a confession — and possibly a survival guide.
When you’re burnt out, overwhelmed, and wondering if you even care about “optimizing your content strategy,” remember: the audience isn’t reading. The algorithm doesn’t care. But weirdly, these low-effort posts will still work.
So why bother crafting a 500-word caption or planning a 9-grid aesthetic when all you really need is a vague quote graphic and a sleepy cat pic?
In conclusion: Phone it in. Post anyway. Collect your likes. Cry later.
Ken Hollow, running on fumes and half-hearted hashtags
Hi. I’m Ken. I run Two Second Solutions, a one-man agency that somehow landed a fox spirit influencer as a client. I drink too much coffee, blog when I need to vent, and regularly update my résumé just in case she sets the office on fire again. I’m not crying — it’s just spell residue.