Under the Hood at 33 Sticks: What Four Months Taught Me About Data, Strategy, and What Really Matters
By Wambui Kang'ara, Marketing & Brand Strategy Intern
As phase 1 of my internship with 33 Sticks comes to a close, I’ve been reflecting on one of the most grounding, challenging, and transformative seasons of my career so far.
Over the past four months, I audited the brand’s social presence, built a comprehensive content strategy and calendar, and piloted execution in November. By introducing consistent publishing and reporting, we established the foundation for weekly content for the first time in years. Tracking website and social media performance, previously inconsistent, brought a new level of visibility and clarity. Alongside this, I helped strengthen brand cohesion and set up a clearer system and brand guidelines for reporting and documentation.
At the same time, I gained exposure to business operations; how projects are scoped, how teams are resourced, how workflows move from insight to execution, and how decisions ripple across clients, timelines, and delivery. Seeing how strategy, data, and operations intersect gave me a far more holistic understanding of how a consultancy actually runs, not just how it looks from the outside.
I had the privilege of working on live projects connected to brands like Vans, Southwest Airlines, and Caesars. For the first time, I saw what data-driven decision-making really looks like in practice. From learning the foundations of data architecture to understanding how deeply data visualization influences outcomes, I learned quickly that how data is framed can either shape or distort entire strategies.
There were moments of real doubt. Imposter syndrome hit hard when I first saw how complex real-world data systems truly are. I remember thinking, How am I a grad student and only now fully seeing this? But I anchored myself in why I was here: to learn. Brand strategy may be my lane, but every new layer of data I picked up made me a stronger strategist and marketer overall.
One of my biggest mindset shifts as a creative came when we we're going over a client site with 33 Sticks co-founder Hila and I realized that great work doesn’t always belong front and center. I genuinely thought, "what do you mean this campaign we built shouldn’t be plastered at every brand touchpoint?" But I learned that pushing creative too hard can distract from sales, user flow, and the customer journey. Sometimes showing less is the most strategic choice, as well as where. The difference between creating for ego and creating for the audience became very clear to me here.
Another defining part of this experience was taking the initiative to meet every team member one-on-one. Those conversations sharpened my critical thinking and deepened my understanding of the brand from the inside out. I also deeply valued the flexibility I was given as a full-time grad student in my final year. I built my own schedule, adjusted tasks as needed, and was trusted with real autonomy. I wasn’t there to tick a box, I was there to make real impact, and that trust meant everything.
The world of data is far more detailed than I imagined. What stood out most was the team’s attention to detail, commitment to constant upskilling, and refusal to deliver cookie-cutter solutions. They care deeply about their clients and the quality of what they deliver. Working with true A-players (people who move at the same speed and hold excellence to the same standard as I do) has been one of the most powerful parts of this journey.
One of the most unexpected lessons? That - surprise surprise, 2–3 hour meetings are a scam. Most of my check-ins were 10–35 minutes once a week, and they were some of the most effective meetings I’ve ever had. We aligned, made decisions, and moved forward. No fluff. Just execution. It completely reshaped how I think about productivity. Clean systems reduce the need for constant meetings. Trust replaces control.
Jason, 33 Sticks CEO, and I often joked about how “unemployable” we’d probably be in traditional corporate systems. Our work styles, our pace, our way of thinking, they don’t fold neatly into rigid structures. But what I learned here is that being labeled “difficult” is often just refusing to shrink into linear systems that weren’t built for real innovation. For the first time, I felt what it’s like to work among fellow "misfits" - people who think differently and don’t apologize for it. And that made the work better.
Remote work brought its own challenges; time zones, no physical connection, fewer spontaneous moments of collaboration. There were moments it felt slow, even isolating. But with patience, remaining flexible, and intentional; the connections still happened. I learned that remote work fail when we stop being intentional with people.
Would you believe me if I said I was hired without a CV? Halfway through the internship, I suddenly remembered this then I asked Jason how that even happened. He laughed and said he trusted his judgement, and that ETSU material had never failed him. As an international student navigating a foreign land, that trust meant more than I can explain. I’m also deeply grateful to the ETSU Department of Media & Communication for building real bridges between students and industry.
This experience reshaped how I think about data, creativity, decision-making, collaboration, and what real excellence actually looks like. It permanently raised my standard for how I want to think, work, and build. A big thank you to the 33 Sticks team for having me, it has been a pleasure contributing to your org.
I’m incredibly excited to be returning next semester. Too many meaningful things have started for me to walk away now. So here's to phase two!
S.Regards. 🌸
Wambui Kang'ara is a graduate student from Kenya pursuing a Master's in Brand & Media Strategy at ETSU. During her internship with 33 Sticks, she built the company's first comprehensive content strategy, established consistent publishing cadences, and gained hands-on experience with elite clients including Vans, Southwest Airlines, and Caesars Entertainment. She also serves as a Graduate Assistant in ETSU's Graduate School and as Vice President of Shades of Africa. She'll be returning to 33 Sticks for phase two of her internship next semester.
