Social media has taken over our lives, replacing traditional correspondence, news delivery, photo albums, music recommendations, and even high school reunions. There are basically 4 types of post that any given person posts on any given social network, and its important to talk about them before we figure out whats WRONG with them.

1. The Cry for Help

Social media is nothing, if it is not a support net. In times of great crisis, it is helpful, calming, and even healing to know that your friends are there with you. The usefulness of this is based on the amount of credit you instill in a +1 or “Like,” of course, but, regardless, its there. And the term “Let me know if there is anything we can do” is a bit of a throwaway, since, there usually isn’t anything that needs to be done. Just wait and see what happens.

The other sort of cry for help is a bit more attention-grabby, which is the purposefully passive-aggressive, vague statement that gullible people respond to with “What’s wrong?” and “Wanna talk about it?”

2. Nonsense

These are posts that don’t make sense, have no hooks towards reality, and aren’t there to generate a response from anyone. They are like a doodle in a notebook… Might have meant something to you, but means NOTHING to the rest of the world.

3. Stuff no one cares about

Gross things. Overly personal things. Criminal things.

I don’t want to know about how heavy your period is, or how much you vomited or how dinner last night gave you massive diarrhea. I don’t want to know about sexual escapades. I don’t want to know that you’re breaking the law. Some people do, though.

4. Boast Post

Closely related to the “Stuff no one cares about” is the Boast Post. If your post is bragging about something, you shouldn’t post it.

If your post is highlighting your upper-middle-class lifestyle, you shouldn’t post it. Generally, any post that covers gratitude is bragging like crazy. Some of your friends are having a bad day, week, month, or year, and by bragging like this, you’re making yourself feel better, and them feel worse.

All this not to say that you aren’t allowed to post whatever you want on your own social media feed. If you don’t see someone for a while, and all they see is your social feed, think about how other people’s opinion will be formed around the bits of info you post online. Its important to consider the ramifications.