As I work from home, I interact with people at work on a face to face basis much less frequently than I used to. When I do see them it's usually at a structured event such as a meeting or dinner. I don't ever casually stroll the halls looking for a chat, and don't drop into people's offices. Even if I did, few would be there!

When I had an office at work I had pictures of my son and wife on the wall, model cars on my desk, and various and sundry mementos sprinkled around. These were very  useful as conversation starters . When a person I hadn't met dropped in on me, they invariably scanned my office and commented on something.

I'm wondering if Twitter can be a tool to help people build relationships and find common ground beyond their work roles. Yesterday I tweeted that "I was going to the car show in Pleasanton, CA". A colleague that I communicate with fairly frequently, but have never met, was going to the same show!

In a prior post I mentioned that I am not interested in the personal activities of others, but in second thought, I am. It feels a bit to me like a successful team building exercise. I'm getting to know my twitter friends better, and my followers are getting to know me.