As an avid user and evangelist of twitter, I often come across individuals who are new to the tweeting experience. There are a countless number of blog posts on the net detailing the best ways to make use of twitter. But today I thought I’d compile a short list of “Twitter Do Nots” that will be sure to help youavoidgaining any new followers.

#1: Follow everyone

I like to call this the “Lottery Theory.” Following tons of people on Twitter for no reason does not equate to more followers for you.Whenever I receive an e-mail update from twitter telling me I have a new follower, the first thing I notice is the ratio between how many people they’re following, and how many people are following them. Being followed by someone who’s following five hundred people with two followers of their own just makes me feel like a statistic. You should follow people because you have a sincere interest in what they have to say, not because you’re trying to recruit a large amount of followers for the sake of self-promotion.

Don’t get me wrong, there’s nothing wrong with marketing yourself, but accumulating twitter followers should be a natural process. Forcing things only hurts you in the long run.

#2: Flood your tweets

There is such a thing as tweeting too often. Do not continuously tweet over and over again within a short time period. People who flood my tweet deck dashboard with 10 random links are automatically deleted from my “following” list.

#3: Not uploading a profile photo

This is the ultimate carnal sin in twitter. Not having some type of twitter photograph will make people automatically assume that you are a spammer.

#4: Being selfish

Twitter is about community. Responding to other people’s tweets, retweeting, and getting involved is one of the best things you can do to network and meet new people. Don’t be a loner – be sociable and you’ll begin connecting with others in no time!

#5: Being impatient

Unless you’re a celebrity, don’t expect to find yourself with a few thousand followers after only posting a couple tweets. Gaining followers on Twitter takes time and patience. Tweet unique and interesting content. The followers will naturally come.

#6: Whine

There’s already enough negativity in the world. Don’t bring everybody else down with posts about life’s trivial troubles. Don’t worry, be happy.

Have any other suggestions you think should be added to this list? Leave them in a comment section below! If you want togainnew followers, do the opposite of what’s listed above.