Kevin Systrom Quotes

Powerful Kevin Systrom for Daily Growth

About Kevin Systrom

Kevin Systrom, an American entrepreneur born on December 30, 1988, is best known as the co-founder of Instagram, a popular social media platform that transformed the way people share visual content globally. Born in Herndon, Virginia, Systrom grew up with a passion for technology and photography. He attended Stanford University, where he met fellow student Mike Krieger, who would become his business partner. During their time at Stanford, Systrom developed an early interest in social networks and mobile app development. In the summer of 2010, Systrom and Krieger co-founded Instagram, a photo-sharing application that gained immense popularity due to its simplicity and innovative features. Initially, the app was available only on iOS platforms; however, within a year, it expanded to Android devices, amassing millions of users worldwide. In April 2012, Facebook acquired Instagram for a reported $1 billion. Systrom served as CEO until October 2018, stepping down to explore other opportunities while remaining on the board of directors. Throughout his career, Systrom has been recognized for his contributions to technology and social media. He was named one of Forbes' "30 Under 30" in 2013 and received an Honorary Doctorate of Humane Letters from his alma mater, Stanford University, in 2016. Despite leaving Instagram, Systrom continues to be a significant figure in the tech industry and is believed to be working on new projects that aim to shape the future of digital communication and entertainment.

Interpretations of Popular Quotes

"The only way to do great work is to love what you do."

This quote by Kevin Systrom emphasizes that genuine passion for one's work is crucial for achieving greatness. It suggests that if an individual truly loves what they are doing, they will be more motivated, engaged, and committed to their tasks, ultimately resulting in exceptional outcomes. Passion not only fuels creativity but also fosters the resilience needed to overcome obstacles on the path to success. Therefore, finding a career or project aligned with one's passions can lead to personal fulfillment as well as professional greatness.


"I think that the best products speak for themselves."

The quote by Kevin Systrom suggests that the most effective and successful products are those that require minimal explanation to be understood and appreciated by users. In other words, a product's value should be self-evident through its design, functionality, and user experience, making it easy for people to understand how it can benefit them and why they need it. By focusing on creating products that speak for themselves, innovators and designers can ensure their creations have broad appeal and are more likely to gain widespread adoption in the marketplace.


"In a world of endless possibilities, focus is essential."

The quote by Kevin Systrom emphasizes the importance of focus in a world full of infinite possibilities. It suggests that while we are surrounded by an abundance of choices, focusing on specific goals or tasks allows us to achieve them effectively. Without this concentration, one may become overwhelmed and less likely to succeed. In essence, focus is a key strategy for turning opportunities into tangible outcomes.


"The key to success is understanding that failure is part of the process."

This quote by Kevin Systrom emphasizes the importance of embracing failures as a natural part of the journey towards success. It suggests that when we recognize that setbacks and mistakes are inherent in any significant endeavor, we can develop resilience and persistence, ultimately leading us to achieve our goals. The key is not to avoid failure, but rather to learn from it and use those lessons to propel ourselves forward.


"If you're not failing every now and again, it's a sign you're playing it too safe."

This quote by Kevin Systrom emphasizes that taking risks and experiencing failures are essential aspects of growth and innovation. If one is consistently succeeding without encountering setbacks or challenges, it may indicate they are avoiding risk-taking and playing it too safe. In order to learn, progress, and ultimately achieve greater success, it's crucial to embrace the process of failure as a valuable learning experience that can help one adapt, improve, and find new ways forward.


As a kid, creation was something that I always loved. Creating worlds for video games, creating businesses that didn't make any money, selling lemonade, etcetera. In my fourth grade classroom, I even instituted a government structure because I was really interested in people having positions and there being law.

- Kevin Systrom

Kid, Video, Worlds, Lemonade

Every photo you take communicates something about a moment in time - a brief slice of time of where you were, who you were with, and what you were doing.

- Kevin Systrom

Doing, Brief, About, Slice

I own a Canon 20D, though I don't remember the last time I used it. Ever since the iPhone 4, I've been completely absorbed in taking photos from my mobile phone.

- Kevin Systrom

Own, Used, Been, Canon

Good companies are always fundraising. Whether you're meeting people or considering firms, you're always fundraising.

- Kevin Systrom

Always, Companies, Whether, Considering

I don't foresee a future where people don't have some sort of phone that's like a computer. I don't foresee a future where those phones don't have cameras in them. That spells a future where smartphones are the status quo. You have to ask yourself how you allow people to communicate what's in their lives.

- Kevin Systrom

Communicate, Some, Allow, Status Quo

It helps to see the world through a different lens, and that's what we wanted to do with Instagram. We wanted to give everyone the same feeling of discovering the world around you through a different lens.

- Kevin Systrom

Give, Through, Discovering, Lens

In the past, people have looked at photos as a record of memory. The focus has been on the past tense. With Instagram, the focus is on the present tense.

- Kevin Systrom

Memory, In The Past, Been, Present Tense

Chobani did a really wonderful yogurt campaign on 'Instagram' to shift perceptions away from the fact that they were just yogurt. And they had a 7-point incremental lift on shifting that perception through a brand advertisement on Instagram.

- Kevin Systrom

Through, Away, Yogurt, Perceptions

I've always had a passion for technology, photography, startups, and connecting people. Bringing those aspects together made me successful.

- Kevin Systrom

Always, Made, Aspects, Startups

Traditional businesses can say, 'We're going to sell widgets to people, and it will make X amount of profit.' But new business models are hard.

- Kevin Systrom

New, Models, Amount, Profit

Back in the day, I actually studied photography in Florence for a few months, and my photography teacher took away my digital camera and said, 'No, use this - it's analog and it's square.' It was a Holga camera, a very cheap $3 or $4 plastic camera. And that's what inspired 'Instagram'.

- Kevin Systrom

Away, Very, Use, Camera

A platform is the base from which something big happens. In our case, we're an entertainment platform in the sense that there are people signing up like MTV, Burberry, folks like Taylor Swift and Justin Bieber. And why? Because it's their channel to control their entertainment to their fans.

- Kevin Systrom

Big, Entertainment, Channel, Case

It is cool to see that the fashion world has really taken to 'Instagram,' but, again, it is one of the many examples of many communities, whether you are a chef, a skateboarder, a surfer, a skier.

- Kevin Systrom

Cool, Chef, Again, Skier

When you're introducing a mobile app, you look around and say, 'We could be doing 15 different things, but how do we communicate to someone why they would want to download and even sign up for this thing?'

- Kevin Systrom

Doing, Communicate, Sign, Download

I've always been into taking my photos, cropping them square, putting them through a filter in Photoshop.

- Kevin Systrom

Through, Always, Been, Filter

You can build a filter app get people really excited, but the way to keep them is to provide long-term value. Long-term value is, in fact, being its own network.

- Kevin Systrom

Fact, Excited, App, Filter

One of the earliest requested features was to do premium filters where a brand could sponsor a filter. It's just not in our wheelhouse. It doesn't feel 'Instagram'-my in the way that the high-quality brand ads do.

- Kevin Systrom

Could, Sponsor, High-Quality, Filter

Calling 'Instagram' a photo-sharing app is like calling a newspaper a letter-sharing book, or a Mozart grand era symphony a series of notes. 'Instagram' is less about the medium and more about the network.

- Kevin Systrom

Newspaper, Notes, App, Mozart

Facebook's campus has a lot of creative spaces: an analogue print shop, a candy store. It's a dynamic place and one of the best environments I've been in, period.

- Kevin Systrom

Been, Period, Shop, Spaces

It turns out that no undergrad class prepares you to start a startup - you learn most of it as you do it.

- Kevin Systrom

Learn, Most, Startup, Prepares

There are fun parts of running a startup and not so fun parts, and Facebook handles the not so fun parts, like infrastructure, spam, sales. The real questions are, how big can 'Instagram' get? Is it 400 million, or bigger? Can it be a viable business if it is that big? These are at the top of the list for everyone in Silicon Valley.

- Kevin Systrom

Questions, Big, Instagram, Spam

Whether it's an ad or organic content, video provides a new creative dimension for storytelling on 'Instagram'. Video lets people convey the power and beauty in a moment through sight, sound, and motion.

- Kevin Systrom

Storytelling, New, Through, Organic

Working at a startup to make a lot of money was never a thing, and that's why I decided to just finish up school. That was way more important for me.

- Kevin Systrom

Why, More, Way, Startup

Every startup should address a real and demonstrated need in the world - if you build a solution to a problem lots of people have, it's so easy to sell your product to the world.

- Kevin Systrom

Product, Need, Address, Startup

There's a natural set of constraints with mobile phones that force you to be a better photographer by acknowledging and observing the world around you.

- Kevin Systrom

Natural, Mobile, Set, Acknowledging

The printing press did something really big for the world when everyone could get books in their hands and read.

- Kevin Systrom

Hands, Big, Read, Printing

I can't imagine that companies are uninteresting if they don't have a billion users. But I do believe, to have mass scale, you have to be in the many-hundreds-of-millions-of-users range, and there are not that many companies that get there.

- Kevin Systrom

Scale, Imagine, Mass, Uninteresting

All of us in social media and regular media, we're all competing for the same thing, which is this gap between something happening in the world and you knowing about it.

- Kevin Systrom

Competing, Same Thing, Which, Social Media

When people say that college isn't worthwhile and paying all this money isn't worthwhile, I really disagree. I think those experiences and those classes that may not necessarily seem applicable in the moment end up coming back to you time and time again.

- Kevin Systrom

College, I Think, Classes, Time And Time

There are a lot more companies with a lot younger people. It is just like 23-year-olds are starting companies, and they are scaling really quickly.

- Kevin Systrom

Younger, Like, Scaling, Younger People

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