In this special Where Are They Now? episode of the Strategy with Sally podcast, Sally reconnects with longtime community member Amanda Sutherland, one of the early faces of the Sparkle world and a huge part of the journey in the early days of the business.

Amanda shares how her path has evolved since first joining the program, from trying to get started as a VA to building a creative, flexible life that blends tech support, performance, and artistic expression.

Amanda now works behind the scenes supporting business associations with membership systems, websites, and automation — the kind of tech work most entrepreneurs avoid. She also helps female entrepreneurs over 50 overcome tech overwhelm with one-on-one support.

But that's only part of the story.

She's also known for bringing sparkle everywhere she goes — including her famous December tradition of wearing a different Santa hat every day, and performing as El the Christmas Elf, creating personalised videos, appearances, and festive content for families.

Since being part of the Sparkle community, Amanda has leaned fully into her creative side. She's now:

• Studying a Bachelor of Arts with a performance major

• Acting in TV productions as an extra

• Performing in improv shows

• Writing a play

• Creating costumes for theatre productions

• Exhibiting ceramics in art galleries

• Learning painting and photography

Amanda shared that one of the biggest changes since joining the program has been confidence — learning to embrace who she really is and stop holding back her creative side.

Sally also reflects on Amanda being one of the first people to support the business in its early stages, even trading services when the team couldn't afford staff yet. From community updates to team retreats and road trips, Amanda was part of many of the memories that helped shape the Sparkle world.

During the live session, Amanda was awarded a special recognition for her creativity, confidence, and commitment to showing up authentically — something she now embodies every day through her work, performances, and art.

Follow Amanda here:
👉 https://facebook.com/amandalee

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