Unearthing the Beet and Potatoes of Successful Phone Calls
Release Date: 02/22/2024
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Eric Thompson interviews Jackie Converse, a Dallas-based Ninja with Allie Beth Allman & Associates, who is experiencing extraordinary momentum in her business, describing it as “clients coming out of the woodwork.” Jackie shares how this success is not accidental, but the result of consistent, authentic Ninja habits that focus on relationships over transactions. Jackie highlights three key drivers of her growth: handwritten notes, consistent auto flow through a weekly real estate newsletter, and thoughtful real estate reviews. Her handwritten notes, about ten per week, are personal,...
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In this episode, Eric Thompson interviews John Zickert about how he has grown his real estate team while staying true to Ninja Selling principles. John shares how his team increased production from $55.6M and 120 transactions in 2024 to $66.6M and 151 transactions in 2025, not by chasing new tactics, but by becoming more consistent with the Ninja Nine, improving team alignment, and deepening their commitment to value-driven relationships. John explains the structure of his team, the role clarity within it, and the “definitive purpose” that guides everything they do: to create value for...
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Don't Forget to Have Fun
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Rob Nelson and Peter Parnegg explore the idea that fun should not be the reward for success but the fuel for it. The conversation begins with Peter sharing a 30 year life list goal he is about to achieve, a father son heli skiing trip in British Columbia. That story opens a broader discussion about how many professionals postpone joy until “someday” while building businesses that quietly consume their lives. Rob and Peter suggest that fun requires intention and planning. If it is not scheduled, work will always take its place. They contrast bucket list thinking, which often waits until...
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The Pivot from Buying Leads to Building Relationships
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In this episode, Eric Thompson interviews Ryan Craig of Traverse City, Michigan, along with his Ninja Coach Mark Johnson, to explore a powerful transformation: pivoting from a cold lead centric business to a relationship based Ninja business. Ryan previously ran a high pressure lead generation operation with a large team and roughly 35,000 dollars per month in overhead, including about 10,000 dollars per month spent on cold internet leads. The model produced transactions, but it also created constant stress, fragmented attention, and a life where Ryan was physically present with his family but...
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Bonus Episode: The Gold is in the Ghosts Sales Meeting
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In this bonus episode, we’re sharing a recording from our live Ninja Sales Meeting, held the first Monday of every month, after many of you asked to hear these sessions on the podcast. Peter Parnegg delivers an energizing and practical message focused on one core idea: if you want to quickly build your business, master the subtle skills that create real connection. Drawing on insights from Sarah Blakely and the Ninja principles, Peter explores how entrepreneurship exposes our fears and how many of us avoid live conversations because of discomfort, guilt, or fear of “feeling salesy.” In...
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This episode opens with a simple question that hits home for many agents: Do you struggle with consistency? Rob Nelson is joined by Larry Kendall and Eric Thompson to review the pattern they found while researching Ninja Coaching clients who had their best year yet in 2025. Across different personalities, markets, and business styles, the common denominator was not a specific lead source or marketing tactic. It was consistency, and the clearest measurable indicator of consistency was turning in a weekly scorecard. They share that 87% of the "Best Year Yet" Ninha Coaching clients consistently...
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From the Hamster Wheel to Deep Connections
Ninja Selling Podcast
In this Best Year Yet episode, Eric Thompson interviews Derek Walden, a Wichita, Kansas–based agent with At Home Wichita, who more than doubled his business in 2025. Derek closed 56 transactions for approximately 15 million in volume while raising a large family of eight children, with another on the way. He shares how shifting away from a lead heavy, grind based team model and embracing the Ninja approach transformed both his results and his quality of life. Derek describes his early years on a lead generation focused team as a hamster wheel that did not align with his values or his family...
info_outlineReady yourself for an eye-opening journey with Matt and Garrett through the world of communication and personal growth, as, today, they compare it to the adventure of getting kids to eat their veggies. With colorful stories and clever tips, they break down the fear many agents have about making phone calls, share practical ways to conquer it, and, mixing humor with smarts, show how building confidence in communication really is like patiently coaxing children to try new vegetables.
As the conversation continues, our hosts dive deeper into communication tricks, busting myths about sales calls and stressing the importance of real connections. Sticking with the veggies analogy, they stress the need for honesty and empathy in every interaction, and, by flipping challenges into chances to grow and embracing the awkward moments as opportunities, they map out a path to building meaningful relationships and finding success. Tune in today, and learn more about the power of phone calls, get tips to ace those conversations, and witness the ways in which embracing change can transform everything.
Many more tips can be yours by joining the close to 15,000 other Ninjas with all levels of experience who collaborate, ask and answer questions, network, and more in the Ninja Selling Podcast group on Facebook at Ninja Selling Podcast Facebook. Leave a voicemail at 208-MY-NINJA if you’d like to offer more direct feedback. Be sure to check out Ninja Selling Events for upcoming installations and other events, and if you’d like personalized help in achieving your goals, visit Ninja Coaching to connect with one of our fantastic coaches.
Episode Highlights:
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Insights into the psychology of communication and resistance towards making phone calls
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Practical strategies for overcoming discomfort and building confidence in phone conversations
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The parallels between the process of introducing vegetables to children and cultivating effective communication habits
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Sales calls as opportunities for genuine connection and relationship-building
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Embracing discomfort and viewing challenges as opportunities for growth
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Identifying and prioritizing "easy" phone calls to build momentum and confidence
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Practical tips for navigating conversations with authenticity and empathy
Quotes:
"It's like when you have a child and you're teaching them how to eat their veggies."
"We might have grown up in a time that the phone wasn't a useful tool... But now it is an incredibly useful tool."
"You don't have to eat those vegetables raw... We're going to make this thing taste good. And we do that by asking questions."
"I want to see it from a different angle."
"Supplement forms of communication...do not replace the core vegetables in your business diet of making phone calls."
"Ninja is like the anti-salesperson system. It's like, how do we be a salesperson without acting like a salesperson, ever?"
"Too many people I watch dig their heels in and they're just like, “That system doesn't work for me.”"
Links:
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Leave a voicemail at (208) MY-NINJA
Ninja Selling
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Garrett
@ninjaredding
Matt
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The Ninja Selling Podcast Facebook Group
Ninja Selling by Larry Kendall