I swear it’s safe!

I don’t really talk enough about how much I love the community I’ve become a part of thanks to my job as an online marketer in higher education. I ranted about my amazing experience at HighEd Web Buffalo back in October (admittedly, an incredibly scatter-brained, excitement-filled post), but that was seriously just the beginning.

Because I use social media everyday as part of my job, I spend a lot of time on Twitter. I listen (I guess I read…) a lot of great conversation about development in my field, things that go on all over the world, and what’s going on with other people that do what I do. As strange as it sounds, I meet a lot of great people online that are amazing resources for me professionally and personally.

Last night, I went to see the Sabres play the Capitals and noticed that someone on Twitter made a comment about also being at the game. She was someone who I’ve had some conversations with on Twitter, but never met. Before I got inside to my seat, she and I decided to meet up after the first period ended.

I felt like I was on a blind date, awkwardly standing by myself, checking my phone for messages. We finally met up and even though we talked for a few minutes, it was an awesome conversation! We talked about our jobs and the field, and naturally ended it with “we’ll have to meet up again!”

When I came back to my seat, my friends questioned where I had been, or why I would want to meet up with some random person I sort of don’t really know from Twitter. To me, it wasn’t a big deal, but to them it was the strangest thing. I never thought of it that way.

I’m happy to know that I’m a part of a community where something like meeting up with a person after talking to them on Twitter a few times is totally ok. I can look to these strangers for help and advice, and it’s the coolest feeling ever. I may not love my job all the time, but I’m pretty confident that it put me in the best network of professionals on the planet.