That’s me. On Twitter.

It’s been a long time since I last posted. In between, I (finally) discovered the power of microblogging on Twitter. I freely admit that I am late to the Twitter party and a beginner in many ways. It took me about three weeks to discover the elements of microblogging that appeal to me. Like any new innovation, you need a reason to use it, and to stick with it for a little while in order to see the potential.

12 Reasons Why I Use Twitter

1. I have suddently discovered thousands of inspirational educators, creative ideas, and thought-provoking resources
2. Sending out my thoughts into the great beyond is empowering and makes me think (for real or otherwise) that some people want to hear what I have to say
3. I can find people who think like me
4. I can find people who think differently from me
5. I have discovered local (and by local I mean people in my community, city, province, and country) who are doing amazing work and I can actually connect with them – may I mention among many, Astronaut Chris Hadfield @Cmdr_Hadfield as part of my Professional Learning Network (PLN)?
6. I can be a part of the massive network that influences what ideas, opinions and work gets shared across the world, and who it is shared with
7. I can always find something fun, interesting, and useful in my network
8. I sometimes get lost in Tweets, from one link to another, from one person to another. It’s like wandering through a forest wherever your feet take you and discovering everything along the way
9. It’s really easy to set up an account and participate
10. When you don’t have time to fully reflect by engaging in a deep discussion or writing a blog post, Twitter allows you to do a mini-reflection on the go or star interesting items to use later
11. I hear local and world news not just from corporate news sources, but from real people
12. I can Tweet about what interests me: communications and marketing, change management, edtech, and good television @TechPudding

Many tips and tricks have been written, shared, and yes, Tweeted about Twitter and microblogging. Here are a few of the best that I have found.

For New Tweeters

• Twitter in Plain English – A 2-minute video intro to what Twitter is and how you might use it from @leelefever and the folks at @CommonCraft
• 5 Tips for Teachers Getting Started on Twitter – Short blog post on the About Teaching blog by Corinne Campbell @corisel featuring some really easy-to-follow tips
• A Beginner’s Guide to Twitter by Brandon Smith @Brandoncito27 via @mashable and one of the best introductions to Twitter I have read including instructions, videos, definiteions, images, and tips
• Twitter 101: How to Get Started – by Molly Klinefelter via Laptop Magazine @laptopmag featuring advice from beginner to advanced in short, easy-to-bite chunks
• Twitter 101: Getting Started – Twitter’s own tips on how to make the most of your experience
• Mashable’s Twitter Guide Book – useful for all levels of Tweeter

For Pro Tweeters

• 10 Advanced Twitter Tips and Tricks – by Beirut via @tweepi highlighting ways to maximize your time and connections on Twitter
• 20 Twitter Tips for Beginners and Pros by Molly Klinefelter via Laptop Magazine @laptopmag features:
  • Part 2: 7 Twitter Tips to Step your Tweet Up including adding photos, sharing and more
  • Part 3: 7 Ways to Manage Twitter Like a Pro including add-ons, notifications, shortcuts, and multiple accounts
• Mashable’s Twitter Guide Book – via @mashable is useful for all levels of Tweeter
• 7 Tools to Present a Twitter Stream at Your Event on the Michael Heipel’s event marketing blog – this is one way to create a backchannel and connect people in a live stream
• Top 5 Twitter Add-Ons by Debra Ronca via @HowStuffWorks goes through some helpful apps that can make Twitter do more for you

Tweeps I Follow

Here are just a few Tweeps out of the 1,300+ that I enjoy following. I try to follow people with a variety of viewpoints and expertise. There are so many–it’s best to start with a few by searching for terms that you are interested in or people that you already know about. I will feature some local Tweeps in a later post!

• @MobileSyrup – An independent resource on mobile technology in Canada connecting to those who are mobile enthusiasts, professionals and shoppers
• @web20classroom, Steven W. Anderson – An incredible educator and speaker with an excellent blog http://blog.web20classroom.org
• @LDRB – LDRLB (pronounced leader lab) – An online think tank that shares insights from research on leadership, innovation, and strategy
• @tomwhitby Tom Whitby – Prof of Edu (Ret). Founder: #Edchat, The EDU PLN, Edchat Radio Linkedin Tech-Using Profs
• @oldaily Stephen Downes – A Canadian researcher and educator on the cutting edge of MOOCS, e-learning and new media
• @gsiemens George Siemens – A Canadian professor and educator, also on the cutting edge of MOOCS, connectivist learning and edtech
• @ChristensenInst Clayton Christensen Institute – A nonprofit, nonpartisan think tank dedicated to improving the world through disruptive innovation
• @ThisIsSethsBlog Seth Godin – Founder of http://Squidoo.com, author, and blogger
• @Flocabulary Flocabulary – Flocabulary produces educational hip-hop music and some of it is free to use! There are a variety of themes from language arts to math

If you haven’t yet, will you give it a try? If you’re a microblogging fanatic, what’s the best part for you? Any tips to share (or Tweet)?

I invite you to try it out! And I invite you to follow me @TechPudding if you’re interested in communications, edtech, and leadership!