A teen posts a selfie of them looking “cool,” and then waits to see how many likes and comments it can get, like “You’re so pretty!” or “Why are you so perfect?”

Celebrities do it all the time. So why are we surprised when a teenager on social media does the same?

As this scenario plays out every day, I wonder: Why do we use social media as validation?

“It’s a matter of adolescents and teens constantly trying to define themselves,” teen development specialist, Dr. Robyn Silverman says. Teenagers crave this positive feedback on how they fit into the world. They want this feeling of acceptance.

But the issue is that they are looking for validation in a very dangerous place. Social media is a place for public rejection that could be hurtful. It’s a treacherous medium for cyberbullying. I believe that the issue is that, as teens, we look for positive feedback without realizing that there could be criticism.

It’s not only that we find the need to post everything, and I mean everything – how we feel about a song, how life sucks, what we’re doing, where we’re going, who we’re with, and even posts of what we shouldn’t be doing.

We’ve grown up with texting, MSN, Facebook, Twitter, Tumblr, Vine, and Snapchat. Because we’re so young, we are careless of our privacy.

Sometimes we even end up posting something we will regret. We’ve all done it. Blood boiling, we write about something horrible that has just happened and post it.

Below are some tips to THINK of before posting:

• Am I posting something I might be embarrassed of if I see later or if my family sees? If yes, stop. Remember, this is a permanent cyber footprint. Once it’s out there, it’s out there forever.
• Am I posting because I’m hoping someone will make me feel better about my choices or myself? If yes, stop. Remember whose opinion really matters to you and ask them directly instead.
• Am I posting to hurt someone else? If yes, stop. Cyberbullying isn’t okay and can lead to many consequences.

By using those following tips, teenagers will learn how to put social media into perspective, and the power of the “like” is lessened. Thus, they won’t be as likely to share something inappropriate.