So, if you haven’t heard, there’s this website called Twitter. It allows you to find out what people are doing (and thinking) in real time. In 140 character or less, people are addressing the question what are you doing? It’s kind of like a marriage between social networking (Facebook) and a blog (my website) only it’s for people with really, really short-attention spans (like you and me).
If you follow me on Twitter, you may have noticed that I recently started following you. I’m currently following over 2,300 people on Twitter. Here’s why:
- A couple of dudes I really respect, Guy Kawasaki and Michael Hyatt, recommended I try it. They said it would help me with networking. It has.
- People assumed because I wasn’t following them on Twitter that I didn’t love them. (Do you want me to name names?)
- Now that I’m following everyone, anyone can direct message me and that makes communications a lot easier.
- TweetDeck makes it possible to track all my new friends and filter through the noise to hear my closest friends.
- It helps me meet new people I would not normally have followed in the past like Christopher.
So, if you’re looking for a good time, here’s what you can do:
- Sign up for your own Twitter account.
- Follow me.
- Then I’ll follow you back.
We’ll be Twitter friends. We’ll be able to Twitter each other. Won’t that be fun?
By the way if you are already on Twitter, who are some of the people you have found that are interesting to follow?
This is an interesting post. Hearing your reasons makes me think that I might want to try the same thing… I need to give TweetDeck a second try though first.
Thanks!
I don’t feel as special after reading that you follow all who follow you. ;-(
6 Year med. Found her thru ragamuffin soul. Her blog is good too. She doesn’t update either daily, but when she does, it’s good stuff.
i know. you liked my twittering when it was smaller didn’t you? you used to be able to direct message me all the time without anyone else interrupting. i used to stand at the back of the room and shake hands with all my tweets. maybe we should form a twitter deacon board, make some rules and try to get back to the good old days. what do you think? :-)
tony
hahaha! Ozz I had the same thought. I got my email notification that he was following me too and thought to myself, “That’s cool, Tony Morgan must have come across my blog or something…” and then I saw how many people he was following and thought, “Oh well, I’m still pretty awesome.”
It sounds like you are just taking your rules to a different medium using TweetDeck to “filter the noise” so you can hear the other deacons at the back of the room. When someone follows me on Twitter I hope it is because they are interested in what I am saying.
oooo,oooo…can i be a deaconess on the board? my mom was on the church board, she learned me wright! :)
Following people, for me, has become a bit like “don’t judge a book by it’s cover.” Now that I follow more and more people I am meeting some really neat people that I would not have met previoulsy.
I do not auto-follow everyone who follows me though. Most I do but I still manually look at someone’s profile before following just to make sure it’s not sp-am or some company using Twitter just to push product.
http://twitter.com/danieldecker
Being followed is cool, but following that many people just makes everything noise. Twitter “groups,” should they ever get here, would help.
I think it should be noted that Twitter can work in vastly different ways for different people. I find it amusing that many people think folks are using Twitter “the wrong way” simply because they’re using it in a different way.
It should also be noted that CobraCommander doesn’t follow anyone on Twitter.
jweaks, tweetdeck allows you to create groups. check it out.
Thanks for following! I enjoy your books and blogs. Seriously man… it has been a huge blessing to my life.
KJ
I was surprised to see that you would try to follow all your followers! That is some serious noise! As far as interesting people to follow, Perry and Scott Hodge are the most fun I have ever found! And yours is the most costly…I end up buying too much music thanks to your deal alerts!!!! Thanks!
[...] in getting periodic updates throughout the day from our friends, family and co-workers in order to share what we are doing, RIGHT NOW with each other. If it’s not obvious that the last comment was directed at the [...]
I hope you don’t mind but I’m going to copy your idea and suggest some of my friends do the same. Thanks for sharing your strategy.
was pretty cool to be able to read about your trip through our part of Alabama last week… thanks for the follow
I started following those who follow me for the same reasons. 1)Networking. People I wouldn’t normally follow have become some of my best contacts. 2)Accountability. I felt I was getting to prideful trying to have many followers and a few who I actually follow. It helps the Twitter grade, but didn’t feel “right” to me.
Thanks,
Ron Edmondson
http://www.twitter.com/ronedmondson
Just downloaded twwetdeck and working on it. How do you filter through the noise when you don’t have a computer with you? Is there a way to do that from your phone?
Tony,
I haven’t been using Twitter long (thanks for following me!). I’m curious, could you expound on how Twittering has helped with networking…I’d like to learn more. Thanks!
I’m reading this all on my phone and didn’t want to read thru everyone’s comments. Just wanted to say that Joshua Blankenship’s first post is right. Twitter works differently for different people. Currently, Twitter allows me to follow the people I admire over at Newspring and some others I’ve found online thru blogs. I also follow some random friends who have followed my “twitter lead”. I feel that it’s going to be hard to form a personal relationship with someone”random” whom you’re following on the internet but I realize that it does happen.
Since I’m still new to the blogosphere I’m still new to twitter.
I really like following Tony’s posts. It brings me inspiration for my own church.
Joshua Blankenship: oh my gosh, CobraCommander is hilarious.
Tony Morgan is a guy that I really like. Whatever you do DON’T follow Mike Ellis (mikeforjesus on Twitter). He is the chief of all sinners.
My philosophy exactly…how can you connect when 2000 follow you but you follow 23…and with TweetDeck…you can cut out all that noise anyway…
Excellent Tony
Tony, I’m curious as to how you filter through the noise to follow your closest friends? I have tweet deck installed too. Is there a configuration I’m not using?
–Terrace Crawford
http://www.terracecrawford.com
http://www.twitter.com/terracecrawford
terrace try “group”
I love following the Ftech guys – but BrianVinson is always posting tweets that make you go…hmmm…
A leader without follower.. is just out for a walk..
so I guess one cant lead without followers…
Who’s following who..
http://twitter.com/goldeneye