My Conversion
Until recently, I was a Twitterphobe. I work hard to spend my time wisely and fully–both personally and professionally–and to me, Twitter seemed like a galactic waste of time. I believed that Twitter was mainly a tool for stalking celebrities. While I enjoy an occasional People Magazine (and its trashier cousins), logging on daily to see what Ashton and Demi were up to struck me as a really inane way to spend my time.
Today, I see Twitter as a tool to help me be more useful and efficient.
Let me explain. My goal is to reduce suffering and increase productivity and joy in the corporate world, by helping leaders change for good. To this end I do the following:
1. Read, observe, and listen to experts
2. Aggregate the inputs
3. Create models, metaphors, and media (tools, workshops, ebooks, coaching programs, videos) that will inspire and improve lives
One day I realized that people I respect and count on for inspiration and information are on Twitter, and they’re not tweeting about what they ate for lunch. They’re sharing links to valuable information that informs and inspires them, that might or might not make it into their next book, and that I can use today.
I’m now following over two thousand people, which a year ago would have seemed insane. I manage the stream of Tweets using Hootsuite and I spend no more than 15 minutes a day at it.
I’ve been surprised and delighted by the connections I’ve made to big-brained, big-hearted people committed to growing themselves and improving the world.
You can stalk/follow me at @brillianceinc. I commit to putting heart and value into every tweet.
Brilliant Tweeps
The following is a short list of some of some of the people and entities I follow & derive inspiration from. I know I’ve left off some amazing ones and I hope they forgive me!
@MgmtJourney
@DougSundheim
@zappos
@LeadershipFreak
@DanielPink
@Davidrock101
@steveroesler
@MichaelHyatt
@DrAthenaStalk
@DrNickMorgan
@AnnTran_
@KevinEikenberry
@tonyrobbins
@AMA
@HarvardBiz
@tedcoine
@mjasmus
@Leadershipfreak
@SteveGutzler
@llCoolJ
@SteveMartinToGo
@PamSlim
@HalleyBock
@FelixNater
@LizWeberCMC
@LaRaeQuy
If you have recommendations for great people to follow, please include them in the comments below!
Still Confused About Twitter?
There is so much great free online advice about how to best use Twitter. One of my favorites is from Ted Coine, on his follow-back policy.
Conversations for Brilliance
Denise,
This is a great post and thanks for including me with such a great list of Tweeps! Like you, I was a Twitterphobe and I did not buy into the value of this tool. I think I was stuck on the lingo: tweets, twitter, tweeps, retweets, etc. This and the diary updates I saw being promoted just did not seem like a good use of my time. I was wrong however and I am glad I recognized it.
Having met you and other business professionals around the world I’ve come to realize what a great networking, learning, and information sharing tool Twitter and other social media tools can be. (Twitter is my favorite, though.) I like your approach to managing your Twitter stream. I use TweetDeck and the listing feature in Twitter to manage the comments. It’s great to get this diversity of perspectives through social media tools like Twitter as we face this fast paced world of change.
Best Regards,
Robert
What an eloquent addition Robert! Once I got over my initial snobbery & doubt, I was slowed by feelings of intimidation & overwhelm– by the lingo and rules– feeling there was too much for me to learn. Since, I’ve learned that the community is generous with help. A friend, @JackieYunTweets once proactively informed me that I was direct messaging improperly (like whispering into a live microphone). I think I’m mostly over my fear of embarrassing myself.
Here’s to connecting, collaborating, and making a difference.
All my best, Denise