These four words have revolutionized social media as we know it.

Twitter has taken the Internet by storm, but in this current craze are people tweeting (posting a message that’s 140 characters or less) at inappropriate times? Whether it’s a financial analyst during a meeting or a pro-basketball player during half-time, is it OK to tweet while you’re on the clock?

Daniel A. Schwartz, author of “Twittering in the Workplace” and attorney at Pullman & Comley, says it depends on one’s work environment.

“In some places, it might be expected,” Schwartz says. “But in others, it is definitely frowned upon. It’s also a bit of a generational thing too. The thing to remember is that not everyone is alike and you should definitely know your audience before breaking out the phone or BlackBerry.”

Tamera Kremer, author of the slideshow “Leveraging Twitter in the Workplace” and Founder of Wildfire Strategic Marketing and SustainabilityCamp.org, says, “The same etiquette applies for tweeting in a meeting as would apply for taking a call or using your BlackBerry.”

“It would be considered rude to the others in the room,” Kremer says. “The one caveat with Twitter is if you’re in a meeting with fellow ‘tweeple’ (people using the service), and the expectation is that everyone is tweeting.”

Schwartz says look to your boss for meeting protocol, “If your boss is breaking out the BlackBerry during a meeting, that’s probably a sign that it is OK to look at yours once in a while. But if no one else is looking at it, just keep your phone or mobile device in your pocket.”

Tweets while working?
And how common is this practice of people tweeting in a work-related function? Schwartz says it depends of the type of job environment you’re in.

“For example, among lawyers, Twitter is still a bit of a novelty,” Schwartz says. “But among media types, it’s almost second nature. Regardless, Twitter use in the workplace ought to be work-connected. If you’re using it in a meeting to keep up with what time a movie is you’re seeing that night, that’s probably not a good use and is rude to your meeting participants.”

Meghan Gonyo, New Business Development Executive for Hudson Yards, a visual communication company, says your tweets should be of worth. She says if you’re tweeting on your personal twitter during a meeting saying, “in a meeting,” that’s not useful information.

Kremer has a similar viewpoint to Gonyo. In Kremer’s slideshow she says, “the only hard and fast rules of Twitter interactions are:

Gonyo says the most important thing is to be specific about the use of your Twitter. Is your page going to be personal or for business? You have to decide and separate the two.

“Your personal account could turn off someone who could be a good connection,” Gonyo says.

After you sign up for Twitter (after the workdays over, of course), decide what you want to use it for, and begin typing your very first tweet, you find yourself going over the 140 character limit.

You thought you’d be fine, since the limit on text messages is 160 characters and you usually don’t go over that (especially when texting your latest crush) because you want to ensure your text won’t be cut short when received. Oh, how you could really use those extra 20 characters right about now.

So with each tweet limited to 140 characters, is the way we communicate being affected?

Natalie Gontcharova, Managing Editor of Ins&Outs Magazine, doesn’t think Twitter’s character limit is hindering people.
“There’s a school of thought that claims Twitter has begun to dumb down our generation because of the character limit,” Gontcharova says.

“I don’t think people are going to ‘unlearn’ how to read and write anything soon just because there is now an express way to communicate,” Gontcharova says.

Gonyo says the 140 character limit is encouraging people who write well. With Twitter, people have to say something interesting and engaging quickly, Gonyo says.

“People respond better to people who write without code words and acronyms,” Gonyo says. “And to do that in 140 characters . . . that’s well done!”

Schwartz’s response to the character restriction is complementary to Gonyo’s.

“People who use Twitter seem more direct with their communications,” Schwartz says. “It forces you to get your point across quickly and without lots of extraneous stuff. It’s a good lesson that brevity works. On the other hand, avoid the acronyms and shortcuts. It’s just not professional to use ROFL or WTF in your correspondence.”

So, what are you doing?

There is a “learning curve” with new technology explains business etiquette expert Barbara Pachter.

According to Pachter, author of NewRules@Work: 79 Etiquette Tips, Tools, and Techniques to Get Ahead and Stay Ahead (Prentice Hall Press), she rarely has to remind people anymore to turn off their cell phones in meetings, avoid all caps in an email, or speak slowly when leaving their phone number on voicemail. These technologies have been around for a while.

Yet, she says, when new ways of connecting appear in the workplace, like Facebook, Twitter, or even the BlackBerry since it can connect you to social media, people make all sorts of mistakes when using them that can affect their jobs or careers.

It is only over time, Pachter adds, as etiquette experts weigh in and people learn from their mistakes that professionals start using these new tools more effectively and politely. In the meantime she suggests avoiding these 7 costly blunders:

1. Criticizing your employer. One woman recently posted on her Facebook page, “Attending another stupid work meeting. Can’t wait to get to the bars!” People are still posting negative comments about their company or boss on social networking sites. You can get reprimanded or fired because of it. Why would you bite the hand that feeds you?

2. Posting offensive photos and videos on Facebook or YouTube. Recently two Domino’s employees lost their jobs after posting a video of themselves doing unmentionable things to a pizza.

3. Not having a strategy if you don’t want to accept a friend request from a client or boss on Facebook. You don’t want to offend someone by denying their request. Think about the person and what would be the best way to say “no.” You can explain that you are saving Facebook for your family and friends and ask them to please join you on LinkedIn. You can ignore their request on Facebook and just send them a LinkedIn request. You can also accept the invitation and use the privacy controls to limit which sections of your profile they can see.

4. Using your BlackBerry under the table. People think you are ignoring them and there can be consequences. One company lost a large contract because their vice president played with his BlackBerry during a meeting with the potential client.

5. Sending ludicrous tweets on Twitter. I don’t need to read what you ate for dinner. Do I care? Be helpful to people so they want to hear what you have to say.

6. Placing your Blackberry or iphone on the table when meeting with someone. You are so ready to drop them and connect with someone else!

7. Not participating in Facebook, LinkedIn, Twitter, etc. You are missing out. If you do not participate, you will never know how social media can help you and your business.

Barbara Pachter is a speaker, coach and author of numerous business books, including The Power of Positive Confrontation ($14.95, paperback, Marlowe & Co.) and When the Little Things Count ($13.95, paperback, Marlowe & Co.).

She specializes in business etiquette and communication for companies worldwide. Her client list features major organizations, including Microsoft, Pfizer, Chrysler, Cisco and Genentech.

Take an example that many of us have experienced. How many times in a work day does an email pop up from a social networking site? You stop working to see who is communicating with you. Someone “commented” something really funny about your status on Facebook. You stop the project you are working on to quickly comment back. After all it only takes a minute! But then you log on, and OH, my friend posted new pictures from the weekend, I HAVE to look at them quickly. Twenty minutes later you finally get back to that project. These little breaks add up quickly and cost you more productivity than you realize.

The Good
However, there are some professional advantages to having access to social networking sites. There have been studies in Europe that actually show an increase in efficiency when using social networking. There are professions that use these sites to connect faster with other professionals. Recruiters and sales people can make the argument that they use social networking sites as an innovative, efficient way to connect with prospects.

Business owners can use social networking sites to get their name into the market place. An example would be a “friend” on Facebook that posts his bar’s specials daily. This is an efficient, cost free marketing strategy that reaches a large network. Twitter is another popular site. A connection may update their status that they are looking to connect with a local architect. This reaches everyone in their network, who then leverages their network and within minutes they send back a recommendation for an Architect.

The Bad
Business leaders in Milwaukee have mixed opinions on this subject. Small business owners see this as a vital tool. However, they are not sure how much their employees are using it for professional versus personal use. What a business owner will monitor is overall productivity. If your work is suffering or is not at the level it could be because you are spending too much time on these sites, they will notice. Although they may not be able to tie it back to social networking, it could be detrimental to your career.

The Ugly
Larger organizations have the ability to track your internet usage and see exactly how much time you spend on each website. A large, well known Milwaukee organization recently had to give out written warning in regards to overuse of Facebook. Another violation would lead to termination. Imagine having to explain that in an interview for your next job!

The first step to overcoming the threat of wasting away valuable work time to social networking is to not connect these sites to your work email. It is difficult for many professionals to concentrate on a report they are working on, or sales calls they need to make when they see the email pop up that someone, most likely in their personal life, is looking to connect about something that could quite possibly be more entertaining than the job they are doing.

Even if you take it off your work email, and make the switch to your personal email, there is still your cell phone. It is relatively easy to connect your social networking sites to your cell phone. This makes it even more difficult to stray away from social networking distractions. Unless you absolutely need to be connected because of your job, find a way to disconnect during the day. If this presents a problem that you could miss important calls, I would suggest taking the applications off completely. You have your personal time to get caught up. Again, this is only if you do not need these sites to be efficient in your role.

Social networking sites are powerful and can have a very positive impact on business. Everyone has to take responsibility for how they use these tools. If you know what your network of friends and acquaintances are doing on an hourly basis, you are abusing your ability to use these sites at work and it is time to cut the cord to social networking during work hours. Your performance is constantly being measured and that is arguably more important than knowing the exact minute your best friend from grade school joined a new fan group. Use these sites to your advantage to make yourself more efficient and do not become reliant on these sites as entertainment to get you through your day. And, by the way, if your job isn’t holding your interest enough to stay away from social networking, it may be time for a career change.