To Tweet or not to Tweet?

Be like the bird who, pausing in her flight awhile on boughs too slight, feels them give way beneath her, and yet sings, knowing she hath wings.

-Victor Hugo

As an already seasoned (check at least five times a day or feel withdrawal symptoms) personal user of Facebook, I guess it is surprising that until this week I had only really used Twitter for my past employers in a professional capacity. It is however true and a fact that I decided to remedy following pressure from various friends and family who repeatedly assured me that it was a great tool to find job listings and to connect with recruiters.

Whether or not it was a good idea on my part remains to be seen, as Twitter has become ten times more addictive for me than Facebook has ever been. At first I admit I wasn't too sure where to start - I was already following a few celebs and book publishers from when I set my account up years ago - but once I began to add more companies and started to get information of personal interest to me up on my feed, I found it hard to stop. Now my smartphone is buzzing every few minutes with a new follower and I can't deny that I feel a heady rush of excitement every time it goes off (much as it annoys those around me).

Yes Twitter is good for jobs, it is great having vacancies in my field all in a handy place and it is particularly useful if you wish to target a specific company (see... homing missile). BUT it is also very easy to get lost in your own little Twitter world, especially when you have a collection of the things you are most interested in and a chorus of like-minded individuals all on one continuous stream... and don't even get me started on all the competitions!!

At the moment I'm guessing it is more of a positive than a negative for my job search. I'll just have to be strong and remember not to let all the tweeting drown out my own song...