I vividly remember getting my first job as a freelance writer. I was working at a Marble Slab ice cream store and chatting with the clientele when I got to talking with one older gentleman about what he did for a living. Turned out he owned a TV production studio, and what a coincidence that was — I was in school for writing and wanted to write television and films for a living. He told me he needed a new commercial writer; his previous writer just won an Emmy and they couldn't afford him anymore. He gave me his card.

After a series of phone calls and emails, eventually I got a meeting and *eventually* I got a paid gig doing a little writing there. It was a great time, and it was enough for me to add the note to my resume as I looked for more work. I was just starting my fourth year of university when my Twitter account started getting particularly more useful.

You see, up until recently, that television studio was the only local client I ever had. I'd found all my other work and every other colleague through Twitter.

For over a year, I wrote for AppStorm. I got the job because I saw they were looking over Twitter and got in touch. I wrote a couple articles for Jim Dalrymple's The Loop Magazine because I got in touch with him via Twitter when the magazine started. And, for some strange reason, Paste Magazine editor Josh Jackson followed me on Twitter, so I followed him back. That led to a job covering tech for Paste Magazine. Recently, I even followed some local folks that led to some great opportunities with my existing clients.

The lesson is here is pretty simple: opportunities abound everywhere in the world, particularly places that are geared to be social. Twitter is one such place, maybe obviously. But there are some not-so-obvious rules about Twitter you should know before you use it to get ahead.

1. Twitter is not where you go to talk about anything related to your clients. Not unless you have their express permission, or they expect you to share your work. For example, postach.io (the good folks behind this blog and the popular Evernote blogging technology, in case you were wondering), wouldn't mind if I shared some of their articles. Actually, they'd probably love that. But don't discuss anything else. Nothing about your meetings, contracts, potentials, anything.

2. Any issues, even if they're small, should be discussed privately. And only privately.** I lost my job writing for Paste because I sent out a tweet saying I would have used a different picture for an article I wrote for them. Stupid in hindsight, but an important lesson to learn.

3. Keep it semi-professional. I've made precisely one poop joke on Twitter in the past year and a half. (Bonus points if you manage to find it. There's nothing wrong with some obscenities, but we're not all Mike Monteiro. Obviously, you're not limited to tweeting about your work — after all, you're a human being, not a mindless working machine — but use some common sense before you start tweeting about your crazy weekend.

4. Be grateful. If I see you tweet #blessed, I will unfollow you, but if you're an ungrateful little so-and-so, that's almost worse. (Almost. Nothing is worse than those #blessed people.) Be excited about your opportunities, but never forget your roots, and don't be afraid to dance with the one who brought you. That's humility, and it begets more opportunities.

5. Respect your followers. I'm big on respect, not because I'm great at it, but because it's important. If you respect people, they'll respect you back. For me, my followers are an audience, and I try to self-curate a little bit. I've invested heavily into Day One so I don't feel the need to tweet every thought. I'm not saying you need to censor yourself, and maybe this is just the Canadian part of me, but be polite. Remember Twitter might be social media heaven, but it has to be heaven for everybody.