How to Be Anything is a documentary-style podcast about people with unusual jobs.
Every week, host Emily McCrary tells the story of someone making their living doing something strange or unusual. From puppeteers to tower climbers to scientists who search for dark matter underground and in space, each episode explores how people end up in jobs no one tells you about in school—and what it’s like to build a life doing something most of us have never heard of.
This isn’t a self-help show or a career coaching podcast. How to Be Anything is for the job-curious, the creatively restless, and anyone who likes eavesdropping on someone else’s weird path through life.
You can find us on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or wherever you get your favorite shows.
About the team
Creator and host
Emily McCrary is a writer and based in Richmond, VA. Though most of her reporting covers business and corporate workplaces, she most enjoys writing about original people.
Her work has appeared in Oxford American, the Economist, the BBC, the Washington Post, Lit Hub, and Discover, among others. She is the recipient of a Virginia Press Association award for business and financial journalism. She spends most of her time with dogs.
Editor
Kansas-based audio engineer Caden Baughman has over eight years working in the professional audio field. Caden has had the opportunity to master songs that have gotten over a hundred thousand streams and have had placement with Gatorade, Crocs, Netflix, and HBO Max.
Caden splits his time running sound at local venues, on the road running front-of-house audio, editing podcasts, or mastering songs at Guestroom Studio located in the historic Lee District in downtown Salina, KS.
Producer
Lily I. Johnson is a podcast producer, operations consultant, and copywriter living in Northern California. Her work week might include producing HTBA, project managing for startups, and writing blogs for a wellness brand.
Lily is also a clinical herbalist who helps her clients heal from fatigue, hormonal imbalances, and digestive issues through food and plants.
Why subscribe?
Subscribe to our Substack to get updates on new episodes, photos of HTBA guests, and more info about their work, plus behind the scenes of the show.
