@ Inspiring Others on Twitter

I learnt very early that a twit is a pregnant goldfish. Thus, being called a twit can be a derogatory term reserved to the intellectually challenged. In recent years, the conversations of birds have somehow cleverly made its way online on Twitter.


What is Twitter? It is, essentially, a short-text online announcement tool that you can use to broadcast your personal or business messages. For Facebook users, this is akin to: ‘What are you doing now?’ However, its functions extend far beyond the mundane descriptions that we sometimes experience on this popular portal.


I was introduced to twitting (the practice of using Tweeter) through my Australian friend, Keith de Larue, who is a leading Knowledge Management practitioner. A trainer and KM consultant with a IT background, Keith shared with me how he uses tweets to announce his whereabouts, lifestyle, share ‘live’ knowledge while attending conferences, and spreading the good work of others.


Well known coach Chris Carmichael (who trains Lance Armstrong) has this to say of the 140-character announcement tool (and tweet address is @trainright) :


‘Some people still debate the merits of Twitter, but I’ll tell you this much, I absolutely love the way my coaches use it to keep me updated about the accomplishments of CTS Athletes. Take this weekend for example. Heather Wurtele won Ironman St. George in Utah and I was getting updates along the way from her coach, Nick White. Heather had a great race, winning by nearly 21 minutes! You can read more about it at Ironman.com or www.trainright.com. You can also get info about CTS Ironman Camps at both sites.’


Online marketers and those who work from home seem to be the biggest users of Tweeter. Celebrities have been quick to follow, many of whom have thousands of followers. Ashton Kucher and Demi Moore raised the profile of Tweeter when they went mano a mano with CNN on who would be first to get one million followers (a term for your online tribes), and the couple won. It was, subsequently, heavily promoted by talk-show host Ellen DeGeneres.

Leaders including motivational speakers, gurus, coaches, and professional athletes have gone on the tweet bandwagon. These short bursts of messages have shorter shelf-lives so do not be surprised to see repeat tweets which may, invariably, annoy the impatient. You may get many helpful sharing of seemingly useful articles that may appeal to your subject preferences. A plethora of quotations, links to articles, self-help references, and blatant product promotion will comprise the cryptic mix.

On a plus side, you get to stay closely in touch with friends, associates and team members as you would on instant messaging. However, you would have to trawl through the confusing sentences that may be like a cipher code expert’s joke on the enemy. Words like ‘tinyurl’ refer to ‘links’ (‘tiny url’) to articles, websites and the like. Repetition is the name of the game, and residual memory is just residue from the previous hour or day. The Direct Message part is most useful if you want to make direct contact with others. It may surprise you who actually answers you! For more on tweeting as a personal branding and leadership tool, read Twitter Power 2 by Joel Comm (John Wiley and Sons). You can stay in touch with your tribes and teams with separate addresses, easily.