It’s that time of the week…already! Man, this week went by quickly! Following are my 20 recommendations for following this week. And don’t forget to check back (at the bottom of the post) on others from weeks past you might have missed.
@PeteTheTapeWorm When my season cycling began in full force again in March, I started complaining that my stomach had a mind of its own. For those of you who know me well, you know I name everything…including my stomach. I’ve been referring to it as Pete for the past four months. Yesterday he joined Twitter. The best part about it? It’s not me tweeting for him. He truly does have a mind of his own.
@hooshy I am so embarrassed to say that I missed Hooshy on my very first #FollowFriday list! She’s one of my dear friends IRL and she escaped my typing fingers. She is one the cool kids who has zero ego. It is so much fun to be around her because she’s witty, she’s brilliant, she has great life experience, and she never sugar coats anything. Plus she’s drop-dead gorgeous. So all you single boys out there, line up…she’s not going to be available for long!
@StraightFacePro I haven’t known Patrick very long, but it feels like I’ve known him forever. He’s really smart and truly understands how to use both offline and online vehicles to create and foster relationships. Straight Face Productions teaches companies how to use their brands to connect with their audiences….through comedy.
@Griner David is a blogger for AdFreak and I met him when I blogged about our email ban a few weeks ago. He’s a Mizzou grad and lives in Birmingham, which means we have A LOT of the same friends. With Griner, it’s one degree of separation. Give him some love today; he just lost his father-in-law.
@Welahloo Welah is my RT BFF and another close Toronto friend. I feel like I should move there, as many friends as I have there. Welah is a great connector and engager; one of those people who never forgets to say hello.
@Smashadv Jim is a seriously funny guy (I mean, today he tweeted “The Chick-fil-A girl is definitely flirting with me”) who runs an ad agency. I love following him because he thinks outside of the box and isn’t afraid to tell everyone what he’s trying and how it works. I’ve learned a lot from him about creativity and innovation in just a few months.
@NancyMyrland Nancy is another “one degree of separation” person because I know at least three of her IRL friends. She lives in Indianapolis, but spends quite a bit of time in Chicago (who can blame her?). She helps law firms and attorneys market and grow.
@ananewsflash It’s weird to me that I have a personal relationship with Arizona Newspaper Association because a) I don’t live there and b) an association is not a person. But Perri does a great job of bringing the brand to life (you can also find her at @perricollins) and always makes me laugh with weather and food updates.
@shiftworldwide Whenever I see Paul’s avatar pop into my Twitter stream, I think he’s going to be all buttoned-up and serious (look at his avatar – it’s very nice and professional!). But he’s very funny! I somehow have created a bunch of friends in the law field and Paul is one of those. He trains attorneys and is apparently very good at it. So check him out if you’re in the field!
@MollyBlock Molly was one of my very first followers and I miss her if I don’t talk to her daily. She’s one of my Houston contingent (I’ll get down there soon!) and also a fellow communication expert.
@bconrey Brian works for Vistage, but not in the communication department, which is where I spend most of my time in that organization. He is one of the smartest people I’ve had the pleasure of connecting with lately and he has amazing vision. If you can get him on the phone for 10 minutes, I suggest taking advantage. He has an amazing ability to take a situation, analyze it, and give you advice that makes sense instataneously.
@brwney I connected with Renee immediately because of our mutual love of cupcakes. She’s a fellow Chicagoan and foodie. I suggest following her for new ideas and great food conversation!
@AmyNichols I initially met Amy on Twitter because she’s in the franchise industry. She’s the CEO of Dogtopia (dog daycare), who is passionate about dog rescue and education. So she’s a woman, she’s a CEO, she works in the same industry we do, and she loves dogs? No brainer. Follow her.
@GinaAbudi I met Gina through my Vistage connections and have since gotten to know her as a wicked smart leader! She has a really good blog (see it here) about leadership, but sprinkles in polls, stats, and guest bloggers that help define a great business tool.
@TheDataDoc I met Ken on Twitter because of our mutual work in the franchise industry. Since then, he’s given me great technology advice and I’ve helped him with social media. In fact, I got to introduce his keynote speech to the @CETeam conference, via video, last Saturday. He’s one of those guys that does it all – runs a business, has a radio show…and he loves wine.
@ediegalley I love Edie because she never forgets her Twitter friends. A couple of weeks ago I was offline during #TweepleTuesday and she made a point to find me and make sure I was okay. She goes by the “U Can! Queen” which means she helps people be all they can be. She just plain old rocks.
@jsandford I got to know Jamie when his wife came to Chicago and he wanted to surprise her and her friends. He looked up a few of us and asked for advice on restaurants, spas, and clubs. How can you not love a man that takes that much time to show his wife how much he loves her? Since then, he’s debated me about my blog topics and keeps me on my toes. He’s a great follow!
@valoremlamb I was introduced to Patrick via one of my attorney friends and you know how they say social media attracts like-minded people? That’s what happened with Patrick. He’s since met with my team and there seems to be a love fest going on. Now we’re going to have a contest to see whose firm is the coolest, culture-wise. You might want to follow him, just to watch me beat him.
@shawnrecruits4u Shawn is an “old-fashioned cold calling recruiter” as he calls himself. Funny thing is, he’s figured out how to use social networks to recruit. He’s a great contact to have, especially if you’re looking for a job in this crazy economy.
@franchiseshow Well, I’m the new co-host of The Franchise Show (to be heard every Friday at 5:00 CST) and this is our Twitter handle. It’s mostly handled by @MolliMegasko on our behalf, but we’re going to get it to the point that you can ask questions here for the show. Get in on the ground floor!
Past #FollowFriday lists: