Christy Deines

My first job out of college was as a crime reporter at a local newspaper. I worked nights, ate in my car, and drove around with a police scanner, looking for crimes. Knowing that my purpose was to connect with the community, I joined Twitter.

It was a good thing I decided to tweet professionally, because when I made my transition from young, single crime reporter to pregnant, about to pop crime reporter, covering bank robberies, arsons, and even a tornado that summer, I began looking for a way out of the newspaper business. Social media was my ticket to a career in marketing—many people at my next job were already following my crime tweets.