I've made friends, started projects, had job offers, acquisition offers -- all through Twitter. Twitter opens up huge opportunities for meeting people who share your interests.
The single best resource I've seen on this is David Perell and Matthew Kobach's (recent) lecture on "How to Crush it on Twitter" [1].
They say:
- People treat social media interactions like real-life interactions: if you're selfish irl folks won't want to listen to you, so why would social media be any different? Be generous with good ideas
- Pick a niche and only tweet about that niche. This obviously has to be something you actually care about. Your niche is probably smaller than you think
- Practice and review: Post for 30 days and at the end of the month, review the likes/RTs and draw a green circle over what worked and a red circle over what didn't. Post more of what worked and you'll notice you're getting better over time.
It's an excellent watch if you are looking to deliberately grow your Twitter following and are willing to practice
[1]: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=P5d6zm3YbqM&feature=youtu.be