Cold messages to people in my field, do they work? after 6 years as a data-entry clerk

A friend suggested informational chats and I do not know how to ask. It has been weighing on me all week. I worry about bothering people. How do you phrase the request?

Thanks for writing this out. I went through something close to it 3 months ago, and it got easier once I kept a simple log of every call and form.

Keep everything in writing and save the confirmation numbers. It made the follow-up calls so much easier.