It’s Easy to Talk to People, But There’s a Skill Involved in Conversation

As real estate agents we do a lot of talking. Talk is very important, for through talk we impart information. We talk to prospects, customers, and clients. We talk to other real estate agents, loan officers, home inspectors, appraisers, and attorneys. In short, we talk to everyone involved in our clients' transactions.

Most of us are skilled talkers, but how many of us are equally skilled at conversation?

Conversation is not the same as talk: conversation is two sided. A conversationalist draws out the other people involved in the conversation. Through conversation new information can be acquire, and through conversation issues may be resolved.

An indicator of whether one is a talker or a conversationalist is in the type of questions asked.

Talkers ask yes/no questions. Yes/no questions can be answered with the nod of a head. Yes/no questioning does little to encourage others to volunteer additional information.

Conversationalists on the other hand, ask open ended questions. Open ended questions have no predictable answer. Unexpected and often important information can result from open ended questioning.

Therefore, for real estate agents, conversation is the more valuable skill.

I challenge you as you go through your day to self-evaluate. Do you talk to people, or do you have conversations?