Twitter Addiction and Westwinds

Twitter has changed my life. Not in a spiritual reorienting kind of a way, but it has certainly changed the way I do things. The way I communicate. The way I go through my day. The way I keep up with friends. The way I make new friends.

Twitter is a free social networking/micro-blog application that allows users to send short posts-up to 140 characters long to the Twitter site. Users may also utilize mobile phones and third-party applications such as Twitterific or Facebook to send and receive updates.

The updates are displayed on the Twitter users homepage/profile page and instantly sent to any other users who have signed up to “follow” them. Users have complete control over their “fan base” and can restrict delivery of their updates to individuals if they wish. Users can also update the entire Twitter world if they wish.

Norma, one of our assistants, is freaked out by Twitter. She thinks they are downloading her financial information and spying on her and her new husband. Not so Norma. You are in control.

So, my day begins by telling my friends what I am doing and I read their quick updates. I use Twitterific which is a pop-up translucent window that updates whenever my friends update. Twitter has helped me stay in close contact with friends and associates, clue my secretary in to my whereabouts and plans, talk with my wife, and meet new friends.

I also follow CNN, Barack Obama, and some guy posing as Darth Vader.

Case in point : : : Jason and Erin Kreger are a couple who started coming to Westwinds a few months ago. I met them briefly at an event one time and came away with three things . . . they were introduced to me as a “cute couple,” they are fans of art (Erin is a painter) and they Twitter. The next week we were following one another. Since then, I have learned more about Jason and Erin than some folks who have attended Westwinds for years. We have had lunch. We have double dated. We have shared scotch. We have prayed for one another. I have made new friends.

Last week, while in Nashville, I added a few new friends to my follow list and feel connected to a whole new group of people such as my new friend Michael Hyatt.

I meet with a group of people every year for a think-tank called cre:ate and most of them Twitter. I feel like the think-tank never stopped this year.

My married daughter Karysa who lives out of state Twitters.

I received over 50 "Happy Birthdays" and felt loved on my big day a couple of weeks ago.

So yeah . . . I am a Twitter fan.

Wanna read about how Twitter has saved lives? Go here. And here.

Now . . . hold on to your hats (whatever that means) : : :

On June 1st, Westwinds will introduce Twitter into the live format during Fusion on the weekend. We are in a series on “Images of ATONEMENT” and we are inviting all our people and the rest of the world to participate in the conversation. Unedited. Unfiltered.

We are hosting a Twitter training session on May 25th—the weekend prior—to help those who are less computer savvy get on board (though it is totally easy).

Then, on June 1st, we will have Twitter live on our screens in Fusion. Our people are invited to bring their iPhones, mobile phones, laptops, etc. into the space and communicate via Twitter throughout the experience. We invite not only Westwinds but people all over the world to participate.

Participants can watch the live stream of Fusion directly from our website at www.westwinds.org and log in to Twitter to weigh in.

Want in on the action? Set up your own Twitter profile at www.Twitter.com. Then, follow us at www.twitter.com/westwindsseries

Follow my personal Tweets at www.twitter.com/shameonyoko

On June 1st, Westwinds will have already made the switch to two Fusions for the summer (2 for 3 as we call it happens on May 25). So, the live Twittering will be at 9:00 and 11:00EST.

Want a fun Twitter explanation? Watch the video below.

P.S. this post is also found over at Ethos where great ideas are posted every Wednesday around the Watercooler--go check it out!