What’s better than scrolling through a feed of your closest friends embracing their true personality through embarrassing videos and self-deprecating captions? The era of finstas has been nothing short of entertaining. While finstas can be all fun and games, they can easily destroy your reputation—or someone else’s. 

With a finsta, there’s no better way to complain about first-world problems. However, before you click “share post,” think back to all those protective social media presentations we were forced to sit through in grade school. Once you post, it’s out there forever. There’s no redos or rewinds in the world of social media.

Usually that’s not a problem, but the culture of finstas requires us to be a little more cautious of what we post. If you decide to post a long rant, it’s easy to subtly “@” the person you’re frustrated with. In my opinion, it’s more than a little childish. If you have a problem with someone, simply have an honest conversation with them instead of sending it out for the world to see.

Surprisingly enough, people have gotten fired and lost scholarships because of finstas. While your finsta may seem like a good place to let off some steam and rant about that annoying customer who came in five minutes before closing, many companies see screenshots of the posts. In addition, schools often look at applicants’ social media profiles, so be cautious of the content you put out there.

Finstas are an awesome outlet to get things off your chest or have a good laugh, but only if used correctly. As long as we remember who our audience is, the era of finstas can continue to thrive and bring some humor into our day to day struggles.