Hi, everyone. I'm Hilary Kerr, the co-founder and chief content officer of Who What Where, and this is Second Life, a podcast spotlighting women who have truly inspiring careers. We're talking about their work journeys, what they've learned from the process of

setting aside their doubts or fears, and what happens when they embark on their second life.

Today on the show, I'm speaking with content creator, podcast host, and author, Brooke Averick.

Brooke started her career in early childhood education as a preschool teacher in Philadelphia.

However, like so many of us, during the pandemic she downloaded TikTok, but unlike so many

of us, her first video went viral.

Shortly after, she quit her teaching job to pursue a more creative path.

In 2021, she moved to Los Angeles and briefly joined a content house.

She also launched her hilarious conversational comedy podcast, Brooke and Connor make a podcast,

while still making videos on TikTok. In 2024, she launched her solo podcast, obsessed,

which celebrated being a fan girl.

Then she stepped away from her solo show after starting the process of writing her debut novel,

a love story about an almost 30-year-old on a mission to lose her virginity.

That book, which is a summer must read, is called Phoebe Berman's Gonna Lose it.

It was such a delight to speak with Brooke, and I can't wait for you to hear our conversation.

Now, on Second Life, it's Brooke Averick.

Brooke, are you ready?

I'm ready.

Okay, excellent.

So, we'd like to start this podcast at the beginning. So what did you

study in school, but much more importantly, what did you think you were going to be when you grew up?

I studied early childhood education and I think that I thought I was going to be a lot of different

...