41-buttons
Twitter is the new MySpace, the new Facebook—only smaller. Think of Twitter as microblogging. Each post can only contain 140 characters, so one needs to be concise, and it pays to lrn how to abbrv. There’s no better time to learn a new media or social tool than when you are job searching.

Go to Twitter.com and sign up. It’s free, of course. Then download Tweetdeck, which will help you organize all the posts or “tweets” from your followers. Followers are people who find you so fascinating and charismatic that they want to know every time you post something. Click on the name or “handle” and you can see the contact information for your followers and the people you’re following.
Here are 10 basic Twitter tips:
1. Pick someone important that you want to follow and go to his home Twitter page. You can hitchhike on his popularity with your tweets. Many of his followers will become your followers. Your list of followers will grow and grow, to the point where every week, you should “un-follow” some people who either do not follow you back, or who are just too weird. I know a guy who chose to wear a stocking hat in his picture. I un-followed him.

2. By using “#jobs” or “#HR,” you can see everything about jobs or HR that has been tweeted. It’s important to learn techniques like this to keep your Twitter universe a manageable size, geared toward your interests.

3. Beneath people’s pictures, you are given four action options. The bottom right one, called “actions,” allows you create groups. Start using groups right away, rather than have to sort a large number of people into groups later.

4. “RT” means re-tweet. If someone says something you like, hit RT, which will send that person’s tweet to your followers. The original tweeter will appreciate the added exposure. If you just want to send a message to only one person, use “DM” (direct message). BTW, there is no spam on Twitter because you can’t DM someone who isn’t following you.

5. On Tweetdeck, the blank under the main box automatically reduces your long url into a smaller one. These links are then in your tweet and your followers can go to your blog or website by just clicking on it.

6. Browse Google for Twitter tools. I found “tweetlater,” which allows you to schedule your tweets around the clock. Guy Kawasaki does this too much, so I un-followed him, but when it’s not overused tweetlater is a helpful tool.

7. Don’t forget your manners. Twitter can de-generate into a bunch of people figuratively yelling at each other: “LOOK AT ME! LOOK AT ME!” Fight the urge to promote your business constantly and don’t use links all the time. Be sure to RT often, since if you promote others, they will be more apt to promote you.

8. If you want someone to RT you, ask them nicely: “Please RT.” They will do it, especially if your tweet isn’t too long (less than 120 characters). It’s amazing, but 140 characters can get to feel pretty long.

9. Best time to use twitter? In front of the TV, assuming you have a laptop.

10. At the bottom of each column in Tweetdeck, there is a filter icon. Type in “RT” and you can see all the RTs. Type in “http” and you see all the tweets that are linked somewhere else.

Big Bonus…8 Groups of People to follow and how to follow fast and easy:

Figuring out who to follow on Twitter is a big step to your continued use of this new media. The more interesting the people you follow, the more interesting their tweets, and the more you learn from them. It’s hard to continue to upgrade your list. Here is a technique I have found that helps. Here are seven groups of twitterers that are particularly good: Top HR People who twitter about workplace issues; Top Non Fiction Authors who have written books and have more to say; Executive and Life Coaches who provide insights and tips for all of us who want to improve and ‘get ahead;’ a list of Top celebrities and Kewl people just because we should have fun using twitter, too; Top Venture Capitalists because a lot of people who read this blog are all about starting new companies; Top software developers because the world is being run by these folks and it is always good to overhear their conversations; and last but not least, the Top interactive agencies who have found new ways to use twitter and other social media in their own businesses.

I have not taken the time to describe each and every person below. What I have done is made it simple for you to follow by creating this simple copy and paste list of the top twitters’ twitter names. Just copy and paste each list into www.ninjafollow.com and you will be following them. Some will follow you back and, of course, over time, if you don’t like their tweets, you can always un-follow them. Please add to the list if I missed you, and I am sorry for the oversight.

1. Top HR, Career People from Chris Perry

adriennewaldo,alevit,alisondoyle,askamanager,AndreaSantiago,AnitaBruzzese,engagingbrand,
GradtoGreat,andybeal,andyheadworth,andyinnaples,anthonyfisherpb,barbarasafani,BarbaraSher, Barry_at_IMPACT,BarryMoltz,bencasnocha,byosko,beneubanks,BeverlyHarvey,BeverlyMacy,
billiesucher,blakesunshine,glhoffman, bradleywill,careerealism, crisjobcoach,InterviewAngel,CarlosHernandez,iRelaunch,mightycasey, YourOnRamp,ChadALevitt,chandlee,charbrown,ceonyc,CherylPalmer,ChrisBrogan,garybcohen, CareerRocketeer,chrisrussell,cfocoach,prleads,danschawbel,DanThomas,danielpink,dwestjr,
madmain,DavidSandusky,getajob,dawnbugni,CEOCoach,debbieweil,debrawheatman,
DianaJennings,resumesrevealed,eogez,CareerDiva,fbrahimi,GayleHoward,WorkforceFifty, linkup.
Gillian_Kelly,GLHoffman,HajjFlemings,haroldmellor,harparora,eExecutives,heatherhuhman,
mountflorida,IlissaSmanes,jacobshare,valueintowords,janmelnik,jannwatt,jasonalba,jjbuss,
career_advisor,Seiden,jeffjarvis,jeffrey_blake,ysnjen,joanschramm,cheezhead,ducttape,
theresumebay,jonathanfields,jtodonnell,juliaerickson,junloayza,midlifetrip,workinggirl,katiekonrath,keppie_careers, kirstendixson,kgrantcareers,kirshnade,KristenFischer,KristenJacoway,kkaleal,Resumeexpert,
laurenstill,lruettimann,Leonard_Lang,LesleyEverett,workguru

LiveYourBrand,InteviewCoach,lindseypollak,liz_lynch,louise_fletcher,louisemowbray,mariaduron,CandidatesChair,
stelzner,MarthaFinney,MartinBuckland,resumepro,ExpatCoachMegan,megguiseppi,KCCareerCoach,casseracomm,
N2growth,monicaobrien,LeadersCoach,TheLongoReport,imnickarmstrong,Rynge,pamslim,
paulcopcutt,Salesrecruiter,philgerb,philrecareered,phyllisshabad,RachelGogos,10GMRachel,
myreinventure,RobCuesta,RoxanneRavenel,sallywitzky,PRsarahevans,sherryfm,scottallen,
scotherrick,nametagscott,career20,SelenaDehne,SusanHeathfield,SusanIreland,DailyCareerTips, teenarose,MakingSense,tmonhollon,tferriss,SpinStrategy,TomScholte,Brandyourself,AResumes,
gradversity,GetHiredGuru,WalterAkana,wendygelberg,wendymarx,WendyTerwelp,williamarruda, willyf,
pathfindernig,MeghanMBiro,careercampaigns,bfederman,daisywright,socialmoves,brigittevanT,
internetinc,keithferrazzi,dirkindallas,penelopetrunk,ohioresgal,StephanieALloyd, prjobs,coachmupboni,sexythinker,JavaSTL,TriumphCIO,lindagriffin,KrisPlantrich,execjobcoach,jobsearchcoach,
socialmediawonk,goodridge,JobSeekersEdge,CJWebster,MelissaWells,mattliptak,LaurenceShatkin,
WorkIntegrity,StevenRothberg,BostonRecruiter,allisoncheston

2. Authors With Something to Say

danielpink, danschawbel, thecreativepenn,jonathanfields, lindseypollack,tferiss, ducttape,pamslim, jack_welch,jeffjarvis,liz_lynch,scottallen,alivelshi, authordavidbach, suzeormanshow,andreagillies, annettefix, glhoffman,christine22hoef,esmo,helentse,petersagal, stephanieklein, susanorlean, trishryan,wilw,fiora_mackenzie, kriswaldherr, malgeo, maureenogle, benmezrich, elissastein, jennyblee, knitgrrl, marielhemingway, ruthreichl, tammypowley, andybeal, chr1sa, cshirky, debiweil, dmscott, joelcomm, Maggie, mike_stelzner, timoreilly, warrenwhitlock, badastronomer, pd_smith, stevenbjohynson, annettecolby, butterflyhaikus, Deepak_chopra, gtdguy, katebornstein,m_hutchings, michellesedas, mrfire, splver, spunkonastick, stevepavilina, suzywelch,glhoffman, tinatessina, tonyrobbins, zenhabits, ginahyams, hackneye, rtfelton,sandrafriend, bookmarketer,grammergirl, wordywoman, bradshorr, johannayoung, arrianahuff, heytammybruce, matthewemay, petparentauthor,alevitt,keppie_careers, JTODonnell, workinggirl,alisondoyle, garybcohen

3. Executive and Life Coaches

adaptivecoach,peterkoning,coacheva,MarkRiffey,ThatPDDiva,CaroMcC,Marismith,XavierNelson,KReschke,Coachtonya,caroldeckert,TrulyLissa,DrTodd,Adamurbanski,robindexter,aureliaw,LindaZimmer,charlyjl,TheInfotainer,stacybrice,CoachDeb,BianaBabinsky,Suzanneholman,Gross_yingling,PaulDuxbury,kat_taf,patgrahamblock,nickthegeek,johnjaworski,coachnat,Jeffschwerdt,Narbundi,psychic1,coach_gold,adaptivecoach,intuitioncoach,tammcginty,metreaks,sreardon,cliffchen,coachingbiztips,k_wright,mtruchtnis,crossgroupinc,jeffreydorman,dgundoju,mktmag,bizshrink,corporatekari,HRTools, stephendangela,colinlewis,anu1026,heartstyles, erinkennedycprw, valueintowords, workwithillness, dawnbugni, jeannemale, joanmershon, ppi_Inc,icoachonline,drakekayo,peterleets,achieveachieve,businesshuman,marchbrowne,latreia,dudok,colinwlewis, motivcoach,stefanpowell,matrixecom, bears4life,markgilbert,coachpatsymat,tonymayo, creativesage,livethchrmdlife, coachbethb, coachingcommons, glhoffman, execcoachCathy,johnmcginn, drsusanb,frankkanu,dramcleod, dashwood, geoanderson, ebusinesscoach, q1david, dynamicinter,quadrant, johanmathso9n, iecoaching, tiffmoses,attentioncoach, ritakikoen, itcoach4u, kathienelson,advisorontarget,billoechsler,daleperryman,uncompromised, suzipomerantz, bizcoachtx, jennygreyling,howlett365

4. Celebrities and Kewl People

stephenfry,lancearmstrong,britneyspears,ricksanchezcnn,THE_REAL_SHAQ,JohnCleese,Wossy,algore,MCHammer,

hodgman,jimmyfallo,DaveJMatthews,neilhimself,Schofe,rustyrockets,AlanCarr,mrskutcher,Schwarzenegger,jimmycarr,ThatKevinSmith,WilliamShatner,snoopdogg,KarlRove,paulocoelho,RealDMitchell,

souljaboytellem,charltonbrooker,LukeWilson,andy_murray,RealRobBrydon,JoeTrippi,Glinner,xxandip,willcarling,MayorOfLondon,

Michael_Phelps,Jamie_Oliver,elijahwood,timminchin,rachel_bilson,MischaBarton,yokoono, tobydayton,

elimanning,reginaspektor,George_Lucas,jamiecullum,mrxtothaz,Herring1967,

rootsmanuva

5. Venture Capitalists and Other Investors

guykawasaki,fredwilson,davidhornik,bfeld,pmarcablog,joshk,edsim,jeremysliew,bgurley,jeffnolan,ChristopherA,Sether,bussgang,VCMike,Jeff,Jasonmendelson,bfeld,pkedrosky,jcaplain,brisbourne,jasonmendelson,ryan_mcintyre,HLMorgan,Rajil,Christine,fdestin,cape,VineetBuch,Andrewparker,Bijan,Robfinn,

MarcGoldberg,Coheda,Cxo,Dba,Mbleyleben,Markpeterdavis,Robhayes,Mikeeisenberg,Chrisfralic,Sagirubin,Rdale,hludwig,Danrua,Stevebrotman,Larryvc,Ministeroforder,
Mattwinn,Adventurista,Salsop,Richtong,Georgezachary, Jack_Welch

6. Top software developers

codinghorror,shanselman,al3x,wilshipley, elijahmanor,TS_Elliott,rands, KathySierra,lazycoder, jeresig,bokardo,jmspool,Carnage4Life, simplebits, jasonfried, adactio,jongalloway,robconery,haacked, crazeegeekchick,judell,migueldeicaza,cspag,dalmaer, unclebobmartin,twleung,bellware, meyerweb,rael,john_lam, stevenf,mfeathers,d2h,noradio,jkottke, jimweirich,stevenharman, WardCunningham,objo,kevindente,laribee,chadfowler,yourdon, davidyack,spolsky,jasona,ourfounder, nkohari,pragdave,tedneward

7. Interactive Agencies
blitzagency, bigspaceship, balcomagency, AKQA, agency_com, agencyrepublic, adasia, 14four,2advanced,
icrossing_uk,iconnicholson, ideacity, draftfcb_press, digitas, designkitchen, DBSInteractive, cscape,criticalmass,
webdotcom, tocquigny,tequiladigital,thinkpop, tbglondon,t3thinktank,struckcreative,RFinteractive,rymeandreason3,razorfish, _RGA,

organicinc, urruncareers, nmsosphere, nemohq,mediafront, macquarium, launchint, imcsquared,

Brandedevo, boathouseinc

8. 101 Best Job Search Folks on Twitter, posted by Susan Joyce here. There are few dups here but some new, great people to follow. All you need to do is copy and paste into Ninjafollow.com.

Andyinnaples, barbarasafani, barry_at_impact,beverlyharvey,careerdiva, ceocoach, chandleee,dailycareertips,daisywright,expatcoachmegan, KCCcareercoach, LearnSolMary, Leonard_Lang, Phyllismufson, susanwhitcomb, vaultcareers, willyf, greenjobideas, actasifsite, anitabruzzese, askamanager,heatherhuhman, internweb, interviewangel, interviewcoach,alisondoyle,andreasantiago, billvick, careerealism,chrisrussell, eexecutives, heymarci,hotjobseditor,jobhunorg, job savants, jobsearchguide, jobsearchninja,jtodonnell,keppie_careers, kevindonlin,latinosatwork,risesmart,roxanneravenel,wendygelberg, wsjcareers, gradtogreat, gradversity,lindsaypollack, seiden,stevenrothberg, sweetcareers, alevit,brandyourself, danschawbel, kirstenddixon, megguisseppi, Williammarruda, mikevanderfort, salesrecruiter, mnheadhunter, susanzelinski, dawnbugni, erinkennedcprw, louise_fletcher, martinbuckland, powercv, red_inc, resumeguru, resumeservice, rezlady,susanireland,theresumebay, pongoresume, valueintowords, garybcohen, sdxhiresheros, jlipschultze, hrbartender, hrspace