We recently connected with Dajae Nelson and have shared our conversation below.

Alright, Dajae thanks for taking the time to share your stories and insights with us today. Let’s kick things off with your mission – what is it and what’s the story behind why it’s your mission?

My mission has always been to make a positive impact on others, and in many cases, to help them see the possibility in themselves and the goals that they would like to reach. This passion led me to the education field where I first worked with children with autism and watched them reach milestones that at one point seemed unattainable. In my role as a realtor, I strive to help people to achieve home ownership. At one point this seemed unattainable to me until I went through the process myself. This personal experience showed me that I wanted to help others to do the same, and I wanted to do it at a high level. My mission is important to me because of how personal it is to me. I’ve experienced being at a place with no direction, and also being at a place where I have somone that is willing to pour into me and to direct me. The latter is obviously preferred, and I want to give others that same level of security.

Awesome – so before we get into the rest of our questions, can you briefly introduce yourself to our readers.

I am Dajae Nelson, a realtor serving the DC, Maryland, and Virginia areas. I assist others at a high level in the buying, selling, and leasing of real estate. My access to an extensive network allows me to assist my clients through the whole process of acquiring real estate and even after. I provide my clients with a personalized experience because everyone and their situation is different. Buying or selling a home can be an emotional experience for some and I’m very considerate of that. I understand that credit is a touchy topic for some, so I do my best to make my clients comfortable and to educate them on their options before they cancel themselves out. As a realtor many times we end up wearing many hats. I’ve helped clients move, clean their house to prepare to be listed, sat with their children as they’ve toured homes, listened to them vent and want to give up on the process, and so much more.

Have you ever had to pivot?

I passed my real estate exam about 5 months after I had began teaching middle school. I don’t regret it at all, but at the time I underestimated the way that I would need to change how I operated my life. I became more conscious of time that I spent idle, the places I spent time at, and the people I spent time with. Before I got into real estate I may have gotten off of work at 3:00pm and went home, but that changed when I had showings at 4:30pm across town. Or, I may not have been as open to initiate conversation with others and share what I do, but I’ve seen myself open up a lot. I’m continuously pivoting in business and in life to achieve the things that I strive for. The most important thing to me while pivoting is to keep my purpose and mission in mind so that my steps always align with it.

What’s a lesson you had to unlearn and what’s the backstory?

Something that I had to unlearn was believing that I could control everything and taking things to heart when they don’t go as planned. I had operated in this way for so long until about a year into real estate. I had a client back out of a deal for something I believed was minor. Initially I wanted to be upset because we were so close to the end and it had already been a challenge finding the right home, but it took conversations with myself and my mentor to look at the situation differently. I understood that the decision my client made wasn’t anything against me and wasn’t saying that I did anything wrong just because things didn’t go how I thought they would. My duties to my client hadn’t changed and neither had the goal of homeownership. This also set my expectations for working with future clients. I know that there may be a house that I love and that my client hates or something in the inspection report that I’d run from, but my client approaches with ease. That’s why it’s important for me to give personalized experiences.

Contact Info:

• Instagram: instagram.com/dajaenelson
• Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/dajae-nelson-a2b809a7