Twittering - How well you know your Acronyms?

When you start using Twitter, many of us long winded people find it a challenge to condense our thoughts into 140 characters. But, what a great challenge --it's like writing a headline for a press release... I always think back to what an old college professor used to say, 'It needs to be like a womans skirt, short enough to be interesting but, long enough to cover the subject.' This was, of course, before sexual harassment lawsuits became popular.

Shortening words is no longer a sign of laziness, unless of course you're writing your resume. I've been told, never abbreviate anything as employers will see it as you being lazy. (Whatev) But, for Twitter, acronyms are necessary to cram as much in as possible. Unless you've perfected the art of text messaging, it's likely that you have no idea what all of the acronyms mean that are constantly in use on Twitter.

Using an acronym is a great way to free up some space when you tweet, but it is very important not to use so many that your tweet looks like a secret code. It is also not a great idea to use acronyms that aren't universally knowns -- your tweet might be important but most people do not have time to de-code what you are saying.

Here are some of the acronyms used most frequently on Twitter:

RT – Re tweeting/forwarding the original tweet.

DM – Direct Message. This is a private message that does not show in the public time line.

FAIL – something's gone wrong (Twitter's down)

LOL - Laugh(ing) out loud

IMHO – In My Humble Opinion

WTH – What the Hell...or 'heck' if you think people believe that's what you mean

BTW – By the way

IRL – In Real Life

FTF – Face to Face

ASAP – As Soon As Possible

JV – Joint Venture

LMK – Let Me Know

J/K – Joking or Just Kidding

FB - Facebook

OH - Overheard

FTL - For the Loss

FTW - For the Win

TTYL - Talk to you later

TY - Thank you

YW - You're welcome

TMI - Too much information

Every day, there seem to be new acronyms that pop up on Twitter. Use them sparingly and make sure you are getting your point across. Sometimes it takes longer to figure out how to type something in "acronym-ese".

Have fun...TTFN (Ta-Ta-For-Now)

About Maureen McHale:

Maureen McHale is a Central Florida resident seeking a marketing management career. Ms. McHale has over 13 years of traditional and internet marketing experience. Additionally, her career has spanned over numerous industries from travel to high tech to solar energy and she is able to adapt her knowledge and skills successfully in almost any environment. Maureen has a passion for the internet, new technology and writing. She authors several blogs with topics ranging from Solar Knowledge to Kidnapped Children to Dying Rich. For more information regarding Maureen McHale's qualifications and to see her full resume, please visit http://www.linkedin.com/in/MaureenMcHale.