*This is one in an occasional series aimed at communicating the different ways social media has changed and continues to boost my own business.

Yesterday I had the distinct pleasure of being contacted through Facebook by one of my favorite authors and “jobless muse” Barbara Winter.  (@joblessmuse on Twitter)

Barbara wrote what I consider one of the best books around on becoming self-employed, expressing your creative self through your work and making an income doing what you love.  She calls Making a Living without a Job—originally published in 1993 and slated for a revised and updated release this month—her “handbook for self-bossers.”

It’s a fantastic guide and one that certainly brought me great enjoyment and comfort over the last several years while on my journey of re-discovering what it is I want to be “when I grow up.”

Starting the Conversation

I came across Barbara on Twitter several months back and we began following each other.  I put on my gushing fangirl hat for a moment and let her know how much I loved her book and appreciated all she does on her website over at JoyfullyJobless.com. She provides a lot of support for entrepreneurs and wannabe-entrepreneurs through her blog, teleclasses, seminars and learning courses.

Over the past few months we exchanged several replies and direct messages, including some silly ones about our love for the Swiffer commercials with the bad 70s and 80s music.  I appreciated how Barbara would often re-tweet some of the info and links I provided related to growing a business with social media as well as some advice she provided me through Facebook recently.

She contacted me yesterday to find out if I would be interested in presenting a teleclass with her on social media marketing for her community.  We chatted on the phone about it and have scheduled the call for Monday, August 24th.  I was honored and excited to say the least.  It’s a great example of how sites like Twitter can 1) connect you with with great people you admire and can learn from 2) expose you to new communities that you may be able to help 3) build relationships that lead to opportunities and partnerships in your business or career and 4) cause you to do a happy dance because you get to work with a kick-butt author and all-around cool lady. 🙂

What it Really Means to “Connect”

If I hadn’t cultivated the relationship with her over time I might have well been just another Tweeter who likes to post social media “stuff” in her Twitter stream.  But by reaching out, making the effort to engage and responding to her questions and comments while at the same time providing helpful content, tips and info not necessarily directed just at her—I’ve been able to enjoy this opportunity to present to her “folks.”

Gotta love Twitter power!