Amanda Dake

Through leaving a comfortable job on a stable career path, Amanda set out on a mission to positively impact as many people as she could. And many would say she’s done that, but she believes she’s just getting started.

What makes you feel proud?

My sons. Without a doubt. Lyric is a student at Arizona State University where he studies business and plays ice hockey. Lane is in high school and is a self-taught, published, professional artist and definitely has been bitten by the entrepreneur bug.

What keeps you up at night?

I get my best ideas in the evening when I can turn off the screens, dim the lights and just be in the quiet. Sometimes, that makes it hard to go to sleep due to the fact that I get so excited about putting the ideas into motion. Of course I also have normal mom fears that are extra loud some nights, especially now that my boys are older and more independent.

One year from today, how do you hope you’re different?

I hope I am a bit more relaxed about how I have raised my boys, more at peace knowing they have been raised to make good choices along their own paths. I also hope that I am more comfortable putting myself “out there” so I can help even more people in the coming years.

“I have normal mom fears that are extra loud some nights, especially now that my boys are older and more independent.”

What’s the single biggest problem you’d like to solve in your community?

I would like to see more non-traditional options in high school education. If it were not for a lot of tears, research and a willingness to try new things, my son Lane would have been lost in the traditional system. Many kids are not so fortunate to have help searching for a better fit.