Traditional sales training usually encourages agents to steer every conversation toward real estate, focusing only on getting the business, and immediately asking people whether they are thinking of buying or selling. For many, this can feel too aggressive or  “salesy,” and understandably so. Today Matt and Garrett guide us through the process of initiating real estate conversations organically by focusing on helping people, bringing value, and being genuinely curious about what is going on in their lives, whether that be real estate-related or not. They talk about detaching from the outcome of these conversations altogether and instead focusing on building relationships. If your intention is to serve people with information, be their expert, and connect, the transactions will always follow. Our hosts revisit the importance of F.O.R.D. topics (Family, Occupation, Recreation, Dreams), and Garrett shares his favorite question to open the door to real estate conversations without being “salesy.” Matt and Garrett share their best advice for keeping these conversations natural, including asking people about their dream home, having a relaxed approach on social media, and being mindful of the context of your relationships so that you can have fun with them in an appropriate way. They remind listeners that you don’t have to run away from real estate conversations to avoid appearing “salesy.” In fact, today's episode will show you how to move toward them, but with sincere interest and intrigue, rather than by shifting into pushy "pursuit mode." Join the growing Ninja Selling Podcast group on Facebook at www.facebook.com/groups/theninjasellingpodcast, where you can ask questions, give advice, and connect with other Ninjas. If you have not been accepted to the group yet, please check your messages for a follow-up from Matt. You can also leave a voicemail with your direct feedback at 208 MY-NINJA.    Episode Highlights: Part of Ninja is not bringing up real estate until the clients does Ninja attracts people who don’t want to act “salesy” Real estate and homes come up organically in conversation all the time You can utilize postcards and marketing to do the real estate talking for you Then you can just focus on connecting with people, and a lot of times, they will bring it up Traditional sales training encourages agents to immediately ask people if they’re thinking of buying or selling With Ninja, you can take that off the table completely - you don’t need to go there The focus should be on creative marketing and reaching out to people to build relationships If your business is built entirely on asking people for referrals, the minute you stop doing that, business stops If someone brings it up, it’s totally okay to engage - but keep the conversation natural and avoid diving right into asking whether they’re thinking of buying or selling Answer their questions and ask your own to keep the conversation going about real estate Balance between knowing you’re the expert and having a conversation with someone - you don’t want to simply lecture people about statistics and market trends You can make outbound calls to follow up on your conversations and give updates without being salesy Your intention should be serving people with information and making connections, not trying to get business Detach from the outcome and the transactions will come If you bring value and expertise to the conversation, you will establish yourself as a trusted advisor Focus on helping people, and they will refer you to everyone they know Analogy of catching a cat - you’ll never catch a cat if it knows you’re in pursuit mode F.O.R.D. (Family, Occupation, Recreation, Dreams) questions are a great way to create connection and steer the conversation to real estate organically One of Garrett’s favorite questions to ask is, What made you fall in love with this house? Then you ask what they might look for differently in their next home It’s fun to talk about dream real es