I’m famous.

But for the strangest, most unexpected reason. I’m known as ‘The Maths Guy‘.

Last week I was popping into town late to meet my parents. As I strolled across Patrick Street a group of teenagers, ecstatic to be finished their exams declared;

‘That’s the Maths guy’

This is now a regular event. At the last Cork hurling game I went to, I ended up giving 4 selfies. Mad.

It’s been a brilliant journey on TikTok.

From 0 to 80,000 followers

The growth of our TikTok has been phenomenal. Over 80,000 people follow the account now.

I only started doing videos on TikTok in March 2024. And I did it reluctantly. I just took a chance to be honest, no game plan.

The growth just started to kick, as each video improved. The appetite for learning about Maths on TikTok took me completely by surprise. Every morning, I started to see more and more messages of students struggling, asking for notes, asking for help. 50, 60, 70+ messages each morning

And I got back to every student. I just sent them on a few bits. Lots of work, but it got the word of mouth going.

The formula that worked

The surprising thing about TikTok, in all of these videos, is that it’s not about being entertaining.

It’s about giving value.

Short, sharp advice and in a ‘non-preachy’ tone. That’s key.

You’ll never compete with the funny viral video on TikTok. But, for that child in 1st year struggling with Algebra, if they come across a simple video with 5 Algebra hacks, that’s watchable. It’s 30 seconds long, they follow along and see if they can spot what’s happening.

And if nothing else, it stokes an interest in Maths. They do listen. They do see their friends commenting, and they do jump on.

It’s about giving value. It’s about explaining through problems that students face in a warm ‘you-can-do-this’ tone. They respect that, and like that.

No need for floss dance, stick to the Maths.

Behind the scenes

Now my day-to-day work involves 5 to 6 hours of planning, shooting and editing videos with my team. It’s all consuming. Every day, we are posting.

I also go live every single day during the week to massive audiences. Students from across the globe tune into their lives.

Latvia, Panama, Thailand, Philippines, Alaska, Slovenia, New Zealand….. just some countries people have joined from.

It’s mad. People just love getting stuck into Maths. Just trying, getting stuck in.

But it’s about showing up. If you miss a day, people start to lose that connection.

The Critics

I’ve seen a lot of commentary in the press around not taking advice from the TikTok.

It’s from a group of people stuck in the past.

The students have moved. TikTok is so easy, so accessible and a trusted part of young peoples lives.

Embrace it. Meet them where they are.