Ask and Ye Shall Be Rewarded

Too many times shyness can get in the way of our saving money, or even simply achieving what we desire. Putting aside our inhibitions and speaking up will often allow you to get great things that you never before would have thought possible.

I recently got contacted by a representative from the CSN stores. They're a company with an array of websites, among them ones that sell lights and other home decor equipment, children's products, kitchen tools, and lots more, all reasonably priced and with free shipping!
They wanted me to do a review on one of their products and gave me a choice of anything from any of their websites, up to a set cost to review for my readers.

My eyes immediately set upon their pasta maker, something that seems especially appealing to me because I like homemade noodles, but rolling them out and cutting them can get tedious. Then I discovered a really cheap grain grinder, something I've wanted for more than a year, seeing as flour, especially specialty flours can be a fortune. Unfortunately, most grinders cost upward of 150 dollars, usually more than 200 dollars, and I have a hard time justifying spending that much money on something that seems a bit of a luxury.

I was torn between these two items, which to request for a review. Both were under the price limit I was offered, but together, they cost 5 dollars more than the alloted amount for a review. I took a chance and asked them if there was a possibility to get both to review... and they said YES! I'm so excited- now two great pieces of kitchen equipment are on their way to me to review, and I can't wait to use them!

Anyhow, the point is- it never hurts to ask. But seriously, what's the worst that can happen? They'll say no, and you move on.

I collect glass jars for many reasons- to store grains, make pickles, make alcohol, among many other reasons, but I rarely get them because I usually make everything from scratch. I randomly sent out an email on our community's list serve saying that I was looking for glass jars and was bombarded by the amount of responses. I just arrived home with so many more pasta sauce jars and now I don't need to go out and pay for them. Free is good.

Lastly, on Thursday I also got my guts together and asked a neighbor permission for something, and was rewarded handsomely. (More on that tomorrow.)

So yes, it can be embarrassing to say "Hey, can I have your cast offs?" I mean, you don't want to be known as a moocher or anything, or the person who takes people's garbage and puts it to use... but you also want to be able to save money where ever you can.
It pays to ask.
Ask and ye shall be rewarded.
Or told no.
But that's life.
You get prepared to be told no, expect it to happen at some point or another, but for the rest of all the "Yes"es,  it pays to ask.

Have you ever been afraid to ask someone for something, then plucked up the courage and been rewarded? Tell us about it. What was the reward for asking? 
Have you ever not asked for something and then regretted it afterward? What was it, and why?