How to write email asking for advice and offering help.

Queue

Hello,

I'm going to email the Cisco team here at work and offer help as I've just passed my CCNA. I'm going to ask for advice on how to better prepare myself for potential interviews. I'm also going to ask them if anything comes up where I can lend a hand, that to please don't hesitate to ask.

What should the subject of this email be?

Anyone care to write a rough draft for me?

Never done this before professionally so I'm overthinking it.

Thanks!

TheFORCE

Tell them that you want to help, no need to send an email, go and talk to them and make contacts. Just dont say you are doing it so you can prepare for interviews. Thats not the way to ask for help. Better in person, its more friendly. You can start with something like.. hey do you guys have anything simple that I can help you with, i just got my CCNA and want to be able to assist and help more etc etc. Just don't do it over email.

networker050184

I'd just go talk to the manager rather than emailing the whole team.

Queue

I talked to my manager (asking for advice she is super helpful) and she recommended I email one of the Cisco team members. I have met him before, but just briefly. I should have been more specific. I'm a night shift worker and I'm in a completely different part of the campus. So seeing him in person is unlikely.

I would agree that in person would be way better, are you both saying that email would be tacky?

thomas_

Making the effort to go see them in person even though they are on a different shift and work in a different part of campus shows that you are serious and motivated. It's easy for someone to blow off an email, then you are left in a auandry of whether to send them another email.

aftereffector

I would strongly recommend making a personal contact with one of the Cisco team members. You are really asking them for a favor more than the other way around, and favors are best asked in person in my experience.

By the way, congratulations!

tedjames

One of our networking guys recently sent me an instant message asking for advice on how to get into security. I had never met him in person since we work in different buildings 10 or so miles away. IMs turned into emails. I had no problem sharing info with him. My point is that most people are very much approachable. If you want to email him, just title your email as something like "Cisco advice/help." If he's too busy right now, he should say so.