Twintors: A Do-It-Yourself Twitter Mentoring Program

You have a great idea for a blog, e-book, or some other business. You may have even started the business, having some success. But, in looking ahead, you see some potential stumbling blocks that you will need help with.

It may be time for a mentor.

There are lots of mentoring programs and coaching programs available, but you may not be ready to take action. Until you find the right fit for you or until you decide you are willing and able to hire a mentor, consider using Twitter.com. At Twitter, you'll find people with a wealth of knowledge and experience and the willingness to share.

I've been using Twitter for two months or so. I am fortunate to have found and follow on Twitter some experts that consistently share information I can immediately put to use. I use these people as my do-it-yourself mentoring program.

Below are my favorite twintors (twitter mentors). Some are real-life mentors and coaches that you may find can help you, one-to-one, at some point. Most are great in their professional areas, all will show you how to make the most of social media to help your business. They are in alphabetical order by their Twitter usernames.

• @barefoot_exec (Carrie Wilkerson) - Always has inspirational tweets and is the definition of looking on the bright side of everything.
• @BradFallon (Brad Fallon) - Pure Internet marketing, but a good example of how it's done.
• @copyblogger (Brian Clark) - Has one of the top blogs in the universe and shares a mix of music, great information on blogging and life, and his tweets demonstrate how to effectively use social media.
• @garyvee (Gary Vaynerchuck) - His tweets are as high-energy as his online videos. That alone keeps me focused and moving forward. Successful in business and online, social media marketing.
• @JoannaLord (Joanna Lord) - Owner of premier job search site, TheOnlineBeat.com, she is a mix of social media marketing, sharing information, and communication with followers.
• @KathleenHessert (Kathleen Hessert) - Consistently posts valuable information and has great communication with followers.
• @MikeGeffner (Mike Geffner) - An award winning writer who is establishing resources for up-and-coming writers. Possibly the best of all at communicating with followers.
• @MrBusinessGolf (Scott Duke) - Scott helps people and businesses use golf to forge partnerships, network and grow. Making excellent use of growing his own business through social media. He's one from which you can learn a great deal.
• @msleisure (Susan Hill) - This well known golf-fitness expert is also an expert at using social media to gain a following and grow her business.
• @problogger (Darren Rowse) - His blog is consistently one of the most popular. Although the topic of Problogger.net is blogging, he shares posts that everyone will find beneficial.

If you were to limit the people you follow to these people, you'd have a good homemade mentoring program. Don't just listen to me, though. Use them as a base and go find your own favorites.

If you read my earlier post, Who's Who of Who to Follow on Twitter (and Why), you'll see some changes. The people on that list who aren't on this one didn't "go bad", they're still great ones to add, too. But, as time moves on, so do my criteria. Any person that makes any of my lists is there for good reason. You'll see if you follow them.

By the way, follow me on twitter.