Illini men's gymnast senior Dylan Kolak says it's hard to find his niche on social media. Yet, with content ranging from fashion to gymnastics and from travel to weightlifting, Kolak has amassed over 740,000 followers on TikTok and over 85,000 on Instagram after gaining popularity in 2020.

"When I first started to gain popularity on TikTok, primarily back in my sophomore year, I just started posting these videos, and they were getting millions and millions of views," Kolak said. "I was like, 'Wow, this is very, very obtainable, this end goal of being this widescale, respected person that with, obviously, a large audience.' When I first started to, I guess, go viral online, that was the biggest motivation I could have gotten to continue to post."

The accounts, which can be found on both platforms under @Dylan.Kolak, started to generate traction while he was at home during the COVID-19 pandemic. After hitting 50,000 followers on TikTok in the summer 2020, a period during which Kolak consistently posted, he grew to 300,000 by the end of the year. By the end of 2021, he grew to almost 600,000 followers. Though his growth has somewhat slowed, he now sits at almost 750,000.

While Kolak used to focus on his viewership numbers and follower count, he has instead shifted his mentality to simply make content he finds amusing and enjoyable to make. Often getting teammates involved in videos, Kolak enjoys making content and aims to post two to three time every day.

"I really just started to make content and videos that I cared about and that I really found amusing, and funny, and just enjoyable to make," Kolak said. "I stopped really caring about views and if like, 'Oh, this isn't my niche, whatever. This isn't gonna perform well.' I just stopped really caring, and I think that's the mindset that you need to have sometimes with social media." 

Kolak does everything for his channel: He brainstorms ideas, writes all the scripts, records, and edits all of his content, all of which can take anywhere from 30 minutes to two hours per day. Now a time-management expert, Kolak says he would rather spend his time being productive, staying busy, and setting himself up for success than sitting around doing nothing.

"These years are probably the most influential and the most important of our lives, so why would I waste that sitting on the couch and watching TV when I could be benefiting myself and setting myself up for success?" Kolak said. "I still try and enjoy my free time and obviously not work too hard. You still need to enjoy things. In my eyes, knowing that I've gotten a lot more done and been productive throughout my day just makes the little free time I have all the more enjoyable."

Kolak, an integrative biology major, wants to use his platform to generate attention toward climate-change related issues, like coral reefs and global warming. Looking to have a successful career in marine biology and ocean sciences, Kolak says having a large following will help him raise awareness and potentially build some funding to achieve those goals.

Now working toward obtaining scuba certification, Kolak will soon start shooting videos underwater and make more content about the environment, especially since he plans on moving to one of the coasts – potentially southern California or Hawaii – after graduation.

With his accounts continuing to grow and attract more attention, Kolak is garnering interest and ultimately working toward his goals of changing the world.

"I'll have people that will listen to me," Kolak said. "If I can grow as much as I possibly can, in my eyes, I just feel like I'm going to be able to make so much more of an impact and a change on the population and society in general."