Mikael Rieck is the author of more than hundred articles on topics of how to make money both online and offline. He has been online since 1999 and has always had a passion for money making opportunities and teaching others how to make a profit.Ask For Help – But Be Ready To Take It When It Comes
From time to time I receive emails from people asking me all kinds of questions (mostly Internet marketing related) and I have to admit that I actually enjoy getting these kinds of emails and I love helping people move forward in any way I can.
All through my time online I have been able to find people that have been willing to help me move forward in my online business and to this day I am still asking a lot of questions to the people that have gone before me.
Naturally I am not asking the same questions over and over but instead some new questions that will help me get from where I am currently at toward where I would like to go.
Asking the right questions to the right people is one of the keys to making faster progress online and if you are not already asking questions it is definitely time to start!
Who To Ask?
Some people will probably find that asking questions can be difficult. Maybe it is because you don’t really know what you want and if that is the case, then you might want to “ask Google” for help.
But once you know what it is that you need help to figure out then it is time to go find someone that has already solved that problem successfully. It doesn’t have to be that difficult and you are probably going to get a lot more answers from some really top people than you might think.
You will find that even well known online marketers and gurus will be willing to share free advice if you ask them politely and in a way so that they can see that you are serious about what it is that you need help for.
Sending an email to someone asking a question like:
“Why are you making so much money when I am not? I think Internet marketing sucks!”
might not be the best approach. 
Be Appreciative and Let it Show
You might not get an answer from everyone you try to send an email to and it might take some time for some of them to respond, but when they do you must remember to be appreciative and thank them.
Recently I had an incident where someone wrote me an email asking a question and I naturally responded within a day with the best answers I had. A part of my answer was a question to clarify some points so that I could help in the best way possible.
Since I sent that email back I haven’t heard anything from the individual and that has left me with a feeling that the person has just wasted my time (and I hate when people do that). If that person decides to ask another question or respond in a month or two, I am pretty sure that the email will go straight to the trash.
Had the person just sent an email back saying “thanks” or something like that, it would have kept the door open for more of my help.
So my best advice is to always ask for help as it can propel you forward but when you ask be sure to prepare your question and be polite and appreciative. It’ll get you far in all aspects of life.
To Your Success,
Mikael
9 Responses so far
Manshu
June 30th, 2009
10:41 pm
I get some email questions that are more like threats. What happens is that I write about some investment or fixed deposit, someone out there goes and invests their money in it.
Usually there is a lag between when you invest and when you get the investment showing up in your account and people get all jittery.
They see my site and think that it is the right platform to complain and shoot me an email.
I feel bad for such people because they don’t understand the difference between their company website and a private blog, but at the same time I don’t respond to them. I have tried it in the past and no matter what you do, these guys just don’t get it.
Mikael
July 1st, 2009
3:51 am
I think that is a very wise choice (not to respond to them). People can get very emotional with their money and when emotions goes in, normally reason goes out
Nicolas Prudhon from SEO Help
July 1st, 2009
12:44 pm
Hi Mikael,
Another very good post, honestly I find your blog much more interesting since you made some changes recently!
I used to reply to different help request very very promptly in the past, but recently my response time lags a bit.
To tell the truth, it’s not out of lack of will from me to respond but I do receive a lot of emails asking a lot of questions each and everyday!
In fact I spend more time daily on those than anything else I do!
Like you said, when people show appreciation of the help you provide, it’s something very much appreciated. Anyway, this shouldn’t be limited to online, it’s just as applicable offline
.-= Nicolas Prudhon@SEO Help´s last blog ..Web Hosting Impact On SEO =-.
Mikael
July 1st, 2009
12:53 pm
Hi Nicolas, Thank you. I’m glad you like it.
I’m sure I’ll put some posts in about making money online but after our discussion I’ll do my best to give it my own kind of “retire early and rich twist”.
As for you taking longer to respond or not respond at all is quite easy to understand and I hope that the people that asks the questions understand that fact. I’m sure that most know that you are not doing it out of bad will
I’m not sure that this post came through strong enough because I feel strongly that showing gratitude and appreciation can open so many doors that you can hardly imagine it.
I’m sure you know how it is when people start seeing you as an expert and looking up to you and also how it feels like to look up to someone else. You can feel that the ones you look up to seem unreachable but when you think about yourself you feel that anybody can reach you, right?
So what I was trying to communicate was that everyone should JUST REACH OUT. There will often be someone in the other end that would love to help you out and if you let them know that you appreciate their help and time they will do it over and over and over and….
Mikael
Nicolas Prudhon from SEO Help
July 1st, 2009
1:06 pm
Actually, you just said something very interesting, even if it’s a bit outside the topic of the post.
One key element to my success was to believe in myself, and the fact that even if someone is a successful person, in the end they are just a normal person.
I remember when I was in Korea during a function dinner, a student journalist was there, and at that time I was at the peak of my success (I just made the national cover in the media as Business person of week), that student was looking at me like I was a god, and I made him the happiest person of the evening by agreeing to shake hand and take a photo with him…
What was very interesting about that, like you said is that person was seeing me at an entire different level as him, where at the core, I’m just an “average joe” and didn’t feel in anyway superior to him…
So yes, like you said just reach out and you may be surprised by the results and answers you may get!
.-= Nicolas Prudhon@SEO Help´s last blog ..Web Hosting Impact On SEO =-.
Mikael
July 1st, 2009
1:45 pm
Having been in Network Marketing for 4 years I know (from both sides) how that picture taking can feel.
I still to this day remember what I felt like when I had a picture taken with Jim Rohn (who is one of my personal development heroes). I couldn’t stop smiling
Simon from Leadership
July 8th, 2009
5:27 pm
I’ve found that when asking for help, it helps to first compliment the person slightly, but this may take little effort at all, because just asking them in the first place can be a compliment.
.-= Simon@Leadership´s last blog ..Leadership Development Programme =-.
Mikael
July 8th, 2009
5:43 pm
Hi Simon, it can definitely help to be polite and compliment people. Everyone loves a compliment and as long as you don’t over do it you’re definitely given more attention.
The Gooroo from Finance Advisory Stop
July 11th, 2009
4:34 am
I can vouch that this works first hand. I contacted some of the biggest finance blogging gurus, and they were not hesitant at all in helping me. Then again, I was very polite. So keep in mind, if you are going to contact a big name blogger, always be polite.
.-= The Gooroo @ Finance Advisory Stop´s last blog ..What Keeps You Blogging? =-.
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