Twitter - a Bird's Nest of Hope & Love

Image by Boris Veldhuijzen van Zanten via Flickr

There are those; the cynical, the nay-sayers who would challenge the idea of an online community that is like a family.

Yes, many of us are professionals looking to meet and expand our networks. Some of us have products or services that we can promote and gain clients from. All types of business people connecting with others in their field to find reprieve from the pushy side of business and be able to share ideas, attend webinars, exchange knowledge, information, and join a group.

Health issues such as; Autism,Breast Cancer, Heart Attacks, Strokes and other causes have a platform.

Politically, it has extended for many of us an eye into the throws of national and global issues without the bias of msn, and gives us information and a voice to express our concerns on subject that affect each of our lives no matter where we live. politics We can find groups such as TCOT that one can be a part of to express freely concerns about our country.

Imagine a group of guys discussing with intense brevity the biggest fish they ever caught, current trades and stats in their favorite sports or even Fantasy Football. Fantasy Football

Additionally, for women; there are the clubs, groups or organizations that draw those who would perhaps never be able to attend an actual live meeting due to children, work, illness, or financial restrictions. To find a plethora of resources, make new girlfriends to connect with, develop and share special friendships with, and find encouragement from each other is found sometimes from a simple 140 character tweet that can brighten up a person's day.

The benefits of Twitter are endless like the reverberation of a smooth stone carefully aimed skipping across a quiet pond. The ripple effect is almost immediate. A word, a cause, a comment can create such a passionate response and support.


For me, it has been only a few months since I discovered Twitter, and admittedly, I have to say it has been a blessing. Funny how God uses the oddest things to help us out when we need it the most. Moving to a new community where I know no one, working virtually with my clients, I spent days and nights focused only on work. On top of an extremely cold winter, missing my grand kids, left me with no energy or desire to seek groups, organizations, let alone trying to make friends. Hating the thought of being stuck in a blue winter mood coupled with an attitude of lethargy, I spent my free moments searching the internet to mine its caverns for untapped treasures.

I started with FB, and rapidly became bored and frustrated, because it did not offer the "live" interaction or dynamics of topics and people I could easily communicate with. It was more dry and stoic, thus I continued my search in hopes of finding something that would suit my personality, and what I found, literally changed my life!

Don't get me wrong, I was busy with work, have a huge address book of professional contacts and business friends. Having traveled all over the world, made friends in different countries, continue my relationships with them, but Twitter was different. The social interaction, the opportunity to meet other professionals, learn and be current with politics, technology, issues, and concerns of today, infused my excitement about Twitter in a most profound way. I looked forward to tweeting with new found enthusiasm and anticipation. Finding new friends and an avenue to interact immediately was sheer delight.

You may even be nodding your head in agreement as you think about why you are on Twitter; personally, it has given me a voice to express my experiences with Breast Cancer, expertise as a Business Executive and Coach, an amateur gourmet chef, a chocolatier, wine connesuier, mom of twins, Grand of 6, an author and writer of books and stories that I can now share. To be involved in causes that are important to me as well as others gives new meaning to social networking.
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As prosaic as it may sound, it already feels like home, like a comfy sweater, like a nest that I share with other tweeps. Home in the sense, that when I log in, I find myself reading with awe some of the wonderful tweets from friends I have found and developed relationships with. It brings a smile to my face, and warms my heart. I know that my presence makes a difference in someone's life and my tweets have value and impact.

I may never meet any of the people on Twitter, but I know we make a difference in each others lives in some way. We all leave an impression in the hearts of those we have come to know. Our imprint will be like a spirit that continues to reach and touch others lives that cannot be taken away even if Twitter goes away, (which I hope never happens).
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We have built an international under-pinning of people who share the same basic desires; to relate to other people who share similar interests and are looking for friends to expand their networks, to be free to speak, pursue their desires for freedom, self-sufficiency ,reward for hard work, protection by our government, and ultimately being able to thank God by honoring Him with our lives.

So thank you Twitter and all the new friends I have made and yet to make. Thank you for being so kind to invite me into your lives and allow me the privilege of sharing mine with you. Thank you for "being" there, with words of encouragement and affirmation. I hope that I too, can be an encourager and offer bits of wisdom and grace to those I meet.

These are my reasons, what are yours? Would love to hear your comments. Thanks!

Social Butterflies - Finding the Right Sites Pt 1

Are you confused about which social site to choose?

Social Sites are popping up all over the web and you may be wondering what they are and if you should belong to any. Perhaps you want to know where you might invest your time and your affiliations?
In researching this vast offering of online communities, I have found that it can become a bit overwhelming with the plethora of information and aspects to them. There are so many to choose from and they all seem to offer different aspects of communication, community, and environments. With this in mind, I thought we would start with two of the most visible and hot sites going right now.
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Facebook tends to be more like an online diary, journal, scrapbook or memoir depending on how you wan to use it. It offers many groups to belong to including causes that may be of interest to you. Most people will post rather than real-time or IM, however that option is available if you want to see who is online when you are. With time you can build your community by inviting people you know, and new people you want to know via a group or cause. Post comments, photos, links, music, videos, whatever it is you want to share that is important to you. Then, take your time to read your connections' posts when it's convenient for you, add comments to their posts, and send them an email directly if you choose.
It also offers groups you can join and meet others with same interest and causes as you have, or you can create a group and invite others to join yours.
You can also use FB as simply a place to post updates on your life with photos and keep it to your immediate circle of family and friends. FaceBook has a tendancy to be more intimate and more casual in its socializing.

The complete opposite of this is Twitter which is real-time, like live texting, except you are interacting with a community of thousands. And, with limit of 140 characters - you learn to tighten your thoughts and respond immediately to a current topic or start a new one yourself. This is where the fun is, because the topics jump around so much, and with the time zones, people from all over the world start to engage themselves in these open forum conversations know as Tweets. Twitter offers the opportunity to find out what other people are thinking and saying in real-time, where you can find people who have opposing or similar interests, political, religious and/or social similarities . It is not a forum for promoting your MLM or selling - people will block you and actually consider it spamming. It is building relationships and exploring subjects of interest to discuss, and yes, sometimes, you may even connect on a business level and make contacts.
If you are really wanting to spread your wings and be a social butterfly -you can join a number of different communities, keeping in mind that they all have "unwritten" rules and etiquette that you need to follow to be able to become part of it.
In my next post, we will look at several more communities and the rules of engagement.