Something Good is Coming!
On a summer morning in June, Dayna Adewuya came for a visit. Upon opening the front door, there she stood, presenting a smile that starts from within, her joyful entry did not even hint that she had already been up for some time, dropped the kids at school, and hustled her way up to my neck of the woods for a podcast recording. She seemed as at ease and as beautiful as ever.
My friendship with Dayna started about a year ago, after an introduction by a mutual friend and photographer, Sergio Vaz Lopes. Our first phone call lasted for over an hour as we discovered that our paths paralleled and our philosophies aligned. Her grace, compassion, and love for others was evident from the beginning. However, her perseverance, ability to navigate tough situations, and her keen grasp of business and relationships are what I found to be intriguing. Dayna’s many layers present an intelligent and capable woman who possesses unique superpowers that she shares in the world. Not afraid to share her thoughts, time, or talent, Dayna is ablaze with purpose. She is not afraid to embrace change and reinvent herself along the way. If you visit with her long enough, you will hear her reveal a mantra, “Something good has got to come out of this!”
Dayna grew up in California from humble beginnings. One of six, she learned early on that she would have to make a way and blaze her own trails. They did not have a lot of money, nor any plans for college, however, her father at one point gave her a gift. He said, “I can give you all the advice, but eventually you will have to find your own way.” That gift of empowerment gave her a different perspective on life and challenges. While she has had bumps and bruise along the way, she says, “I tend to look at things and I can break it down into phases, and then it doesn’t seem that difficult to me.”
“Something good has got to come out of this!”
With her positive mindset Dayna took a dating risk. Early in her career, while working long hours and commuting in Santa Monica, California, she did not have much time for dating. After tiring of the blind dates that her friends arranged, she decided to take matters into her own hands. Finally, after seeing a commercial for E-Harmony, she thought,”Let me give it a try,” believing for certain that, “Something good has got to come out of this!” Something good did come, her husband of 10 years, Opeyemi Adewuya!
Over the course of time in the financial services industry, she had the opportunity to align herself with some of the biggest banking names in the industry, and, as fate would have it, it is also was where the rug was pulled from beneath her. While working at a firm in Houston, The Stanford Financial Group, she thought she had, “arrived.” She poured herself into the job of a lifetime only to find that the firm was entangled with a ponzi scheme. In one moment she was living her dream, in the next, she was out of a job. She left the doors of that company with nothing but her personal items and many questions. With a myriad of emotions, she tried to rebuild her life.
Little did I know that I would come into my true calling.
Eventually, a fresh opportunity arose for her family, one of a new beginning and a fresh slate. She was ready for a change. Pregnant, and with a toddler in tow, she and her family packed up and moved to Saudi Arabia. In her words, “Little did I know that I would fall in love with Saudi Arabia…Little did I know that I would come into my true calling.”
With much contemplation, she knew that this move meant she could reinvent herself and heal from the setbacks of her career. She embraced an opportunity to teach male Saudi children English, completed her MBA, and built and international school. She discovered in this metamorphosis that she could not leave her past, she had to address it and let it become part of her story, even though it was difficult, messy, and painful.
For six years she transformed and grew herself in Saudi Arabia. Then, life threw a curve ball– her brother was sick and she had to come home to California. While she didn’t know what was in her future, she decided upon that visit to stay in the states, move back to her Texas home, and as a single mom with the support of her husband abroad, has worked to rebuild their life in Houston to make way for their future.
Today, her story continues to unfold as she creates a real estate company, The Adewuya Group. She draws from her well of experience to provide a uniquely personalized service for her clients. Dayna knows a thing or two about fresh starts, both stateside and internationally, and is able to assist in a variety of transitional circumstances. She is passionate about people and insistent on building a personal connection. Her own journey has given her a larger capacity for compassion for others as they are going through their own transitions. Dayna is an example of strength and encouragement and uses her super power to help people take monumental tasks and turn them into bite-sized pieces!
Dayna’s Formula for living an Unmuted Life:
1. It doesn’t have to be perfect, it has to be done! Do not get caught in the web of perfectionism. Remember there is something powerful in just getting it done.
2. Speak Your Truth. There is healing and power in the things you have experienced.
3. Don’t let anyone mute your voice! Do not listen to the people who want to shut you down.
The Unmuted Life 