He had a thriving marketing business in high school, then skipped college and built a content agency for pro athletes and top brands

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The Afternoon Shift

Brady Sadler

20 episodes

5 days ago

The Afternoon Shift is a hub for mid-career marketing, media, and creative professionals navigating what’s next. Hosted by Brady Sadler, this show explores how to thrive, not just survive, during the most pivotal stretch of our careers. What started with a few small group conversations quickly became something deeper: research, newsletter, events, a growing community, and now these recorded conversations. We're sitting down with incredible leaders across a wide range of businesses, to dig into personal stories, practical solutions, and the bigger questions shaping our work and our lives right now. This isn’t just a show. It’s part of a larger effort to turn ideas into collaborations, and connections into meaningful work. Because we believe career should be more of a team sport. If this sounds like your kind of community, please hit the follow button. That's a small way you can help us connect with more people. Thanks for listening. Join Us: https://theafternoonshift.com/ Host: https://www.linkedin.com/in/bradysadler/

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Marketing

Business,

Careers

He had a thriving marketing business in high school, then skipped college and built a content agency for pro athletes and top brands

The Afternoon Shift

1 hour 13 minutes

2 months ago

He had a thriving marketing business in high school, then skipped college and built a content agency for pro athletes and top brands

He had a full client roster, was running paid media campaigns, and building lead gen systems before he could legally vote.

Aaron Wagenheim had already lived two distinct career chapters before most of us had even picked a major.

First came digital marketing.

Then came the pivot: helping high school athletes build personal brands before NIL had fully entered the mainstream.

That decision, and a relationship-first approach, shaped everything that followed.

Aaron chose to skip college and double down on what was already working.

Now in his early twenties, he leads BYAWAGS Media, a content agency serving national brands, professional athletes, and local businesses.

He's worked with top brands including GilletteLabs, Dave’s Hot Chicken, Timberland, Stanley, Slate Milk, Raising Cane’s, CVS, 7/11, and RedBull.

When we met at a startup event in Boston, I was struck by Aaron’s clarity and mindset.

While The Afternoon Shift is focused on mid-career and leadership, understanding how early career marketers and entpreneruers see the game right now is instructive.

Especially for those of us navigating what’s next.

In this episode, we cover:

Balancing preparation and posting
The production-value paradox of personal content
Working with athletes in the NIL era
Why companies should support internal creators
The evolution of influencer marketing
Creativity, ego, and the curse of the marketer

Thanks for being here.

Let's make career more of a team sport.

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Connect with Aaron on LinkedIn & Instagram

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Host: Brady Sadler

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Show Art: Kyle Mosher