I “officially” joined Twitter on March 27, 2008.
I started out like many, excited yet a bit skeptical. I listened, watched, and occasionally engaged. I began following those who were in the email marketing space … hoping to learn from and share with others who were passionate about email. I can’t quite recall how it happened, but I stumbled upon a guy with the handle @gregcangialosi (turns out this was also his name). Greg’s tweets were interesting (personally) and relevant (professionally).
Stalking–>Engaging
For the next few months I was in stalk-mode. In other words, I was listening, learning & soaking up tweets. After some time, I made a conscious effort to take the next step in the Twitter progression: Engagement. I begin replying to tweets, @gregcangialosi being one. Like magic, the discussion began. This concept of using Twitter (the tool) to engage in conversation been talked about ad nauseam in blogs, twitter, video (etc); however, it never gets old for me as it is so true (yet often forgotten). When I took the leap from lurker to engager, I was pleasantly surprised when I received a reply from Greg. A conversation ensued.
Aside: I’m realizing that this post is beginning to sound like “How I Got A Date With...” – oh well.
Twitter–>(IM, Email, Phone)–>In Real Life
Greg and I exchanged a few emails over the ensuing months until we took the next step: an in-person meeting. This meet-up happened to be at the Email Evolution Conference in Arizona in February when we shared the stage for “The Great Email Debate.” The transition from online to in real life is critical. Many have blogged about the importance of meeting in person (as well as the post-event crash phenomenon). All of the loose connections you’ve made with that person are suddenly solidified when you put the name/avatar/tweets together with a face. Nothing can replace this. Nothing.
For me, this stage – the physical meeting of the person behind the avatar – got me thinking, “I’d kinda like to work for this guy.”
No Physical Resume
I never emailed Greg (or anyone at Blue Sky Factory) a copy of my resume. In fact, since my Macbook crashed a few years ago, I don’t even have a recent version of my resume. I’m not sure that I ever will again. After all, what really is the value of a resume? It is my belief that if you have an online presence (Facebook, LinkedIn, Twitter, Blogs, etc), a resume is “less necessary.” I’m not suggesting that a resume is obsolete … not yet at least. However, if a potential employer can Google your name, they can pretty quickly get a sense of your digital imprint.
So, Blue Sky Factory never saw a physical copy of my resume, yet they still interviewed (and hired) me.
The Rest is History
A few phone and in-person interviews later and the deal was sealed. I put my notice in at Bronto in early June and officially started at Blue Sky Factory as the Director of Community on July 8th. I’m about 2 weeks in and could not be happier about my decision. Blue Sky Factory is full of super smart, fun, creative, caring, innovative individuals. As I do with everything in my life, I’m diving in head first. I have every intention of completely killing it.
Does anyone else have a story to share about how Twitter helped them land a new job (or at least get their foot in the door)? I’d love to hear from you.
DJ Waldow
@djwaldow
