Another user in this thread posted a comment[1] containing a link to http://www.unmung.com/mastoview?url=mastodon.technology&view... which no doubt will come in very useful for browsing local timelines of other instances to find interesting users.

[1]: https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=16742180

On the left there is a search box. Type in a hashtag and it will give you a list of possible hashtags. Click on one of them and the search results come up in the right-hand column.

Your instance may vary, but that works on mine, and is effective.

Either that or follow a few people and then see who they boost. Follow those boostees if they look interesting. Growth is slower and more organic, but it's a good way to keep growth under control and not end up with a firehose.

There's #ff or #followfriday for suggesting, but i've seen it used to ask for suggestions as well.

You can search on #introductions and see a lot of people making often-hashtag-laden posts describing themselves.

Judging by the recommendations in the comments here, this would be a great place to start.