Some Thoughts From Our First Year Online
We didn’t start with a plan.
We didn’t sit down one day and decide to “be content creators.” We just started posting because it felt like we had things to share, and somewhere along the way, it grew into something bigger than we expected.
We’re Vaishnavi and Karthick, based in Sydney. We both work full-time jobs. We cook, clean, go to work, try to move our bodies, see friends when we can, and do normal life things. Earlier this year, we started putting parts of that life online.
Instagram came first, somewhere around February or March. YouTube followed on the 30th of April. Since then, we’ve tried a lot. Some things worked. Some didn’t. Most of the learning happened in slightly awkward, trial-and-error ways.
This isn’t advice. Just a few observations from our first year online.
Why we started
Instagram started because it felt like I had a lot to share. Food, lunch boxes, routines, everyday life. It was casual, low-pressure, and mostly just documenting things she was already doing.
Then people started asking questions. About our home. About how we manage things. About food. About routines.
That curiosity is what pushed us towards YouTube.
YouTube became the place where longer thoughts lived. Home projects, money conversations, cooking, vlogs, and topics that needed more than 30 seconds to make sense. It wasn’t about chasing trends. It was about putting things in one place that felt useful long-term.
What we posted (and experimented with)
We didn’t box ourselves into one format early on. We tried a mix across Instagram and YouTube:
Vlog-style routine videos
Everyday food and lunch boxes
Saturday Samayal style cooking
Home tours and small home projects
Money-related conversations
“About us” style videos
Educational content around food, calories, protein, superannuation
We didn’t overthink it. We posted, watched, learned, and adjusted. Over time, patterns showed up on their own.
What worked (and surprised us)
Vlog-style, normal-life content worked because it felt familiar. Errands, workdays, cooking, chores, walks. Nothing polished. Just life as it is.
Series content like Saturday Samayal worked because it was predictable in a good way. People knew what to expect and came back for it.
And one thing we didn’t plan for at all, people noticed our dynamic.
A lot of messages mentioned how chores were shared, how conversations felt equal, and how refreshing it was to watch a partnership that felt balanced. That became a quiet reminder that sometimes your “niche” isn’t the topic at all. It’s the way your life looks and feels.
What didn’t work (and why that’s okay)
Some things didn’t land the way we expected. Not because they were bad ideas, but because even we weren’t fully clear on what this space was becoming yet.
Recipes, educational videos, lifestyle, money; we were experimenting. From the outside, it probably felt a little confusing at times.
Instead of stopping to “figure it out,” we kept going.
We paid attention to what resonated, what felt natural to make, and what people stayed for. Clarity came after consistency, not before it. Consistency wins.
The part that doesn’t get talked about enough
Content takes more than time. It takes (alot of) headspace.
Planning, filming, editing, writing captions, thinking about titles; all of it runs alongside work, meals, workouts, family, and everything else. Some weeks flow beautifully. Other weeks, one sudden plan throws everything off. We’ve learned to accept that rhythm instead of fighting it.
There are positives too.
My communication and clarity improved significantly through writing, scripting, and explaining ideas regularly. People around me notice it and share them with me, which in turn boosts my confidence.
For Karthick, editing became a skill almost by accident. At the start of 2025, he had no editing experience at all. Now it’s second nature. What started as “someone has to do this” slowly became confidence, speed, and creative control.
Not everything that grows is visible on the outside.
How we actually work & the tools we use
People often ask how we split the work. This is our real setup.
Pre-production
I handle ideation and scripting. Karthick is the first (re)viewer. He cuts what’s boring, flags what’s too long, and keeps things interesting. We work together and finalise the script.
ChatGPT for structure and clarity
Notion for ideas, scripts, and planning
Production
Filming is both of us. Talking parts, B-roll, whatever the video needs.
iPhone 17 Pro Max camera
Light boxes
Microphone
Tripod stands
Post-production
Karthick edits and I do the QC and packaging. Titles, captions, descriptions.
CapCut for editing
Canva for thumbnails and visuals
ChatGPT for titles and descriptions
Notion for tracking
Envato Elements for assets and music
All the products we use are linked here: Amazon link
Sharing across platforms
We usually start with Instagram and then adapt the same content for TikTok (only recently) and YouTube Shorts. The video stays the same, but the way it’s presented changes slightly. Think, different caption style, title etc.
It’s less about doing more and more about being intentional with what’s already made.
If you’re thinking of starting
Not advice. Just observations.
Start before you feel ready
Improve one thing at a time
Don’t post daily if it drains you
Don’t wait for confidence to upload
Confidence shows up after you hit publish, not before.
Also, buy a mic early if you are going to be talking. Makes a world of a difference to the audio quality.
The unexpected part
One thing we didn’t anticipate was how this would spill into real life.
People recognise us at the shops. Someone might say hi at the gym. We get thoughtful DMs from people who’ve followed for months and suddenly decide to write in. Sometimes it’s a quick hello. Sometimes it’s a long message about how something we shared helped them feel a little less alone.
That part still feels surreal.
It’s also grounding. A reminder that behind numbers and views are real people, watching from their own lives, fitting this content into their days in small ways.
If you’d rather listen to this than read it, we’ve also spoken about all of this in detail in a YouTube video.
You can watch it here:
Same thoughts. Just a longer conversation.
Vaishnavi
