Growing up on a farm, Brad initially parlayed the skills he learned fixing the tractor into work as a mechanic. It didn’t last long.
“I found out I can’t stand being covered in oil all day,” he laughs. “What do you do?”
He eventually transitioned to a role behind the service desk, before taking on sales and management roles in the auto and retail sectors. However, he had long struggled with his mental health, and his anxiety often made it difficult for him to succeed in sales roles. In 2020, he experienced a mental breakdown caused by anxiety and depression. This led him to focus on his recovery, supported in part by a newfound passion for 3D printing.
Looking for work, he joined our Creative Employment Options program. After honing his skills and building his confidence, Brad found a role in-house helping others with what he learned — he joined our team as an Employment Specialist for Empower3D, helping youth with disabilities get the skills they need for employment in the manufacturing sector.
He teaches the classroom component for our Saskatchewan cohort, leading Empower3D participants in 14 weeks of pre-employment and skills training, before they begin a 12-week paid work placement.
“The coolest part about this job is the fact that it is a training day every day. I loved to do it when I was a manager. The training days were the best,” Brad says. “You got to sit with someone, you got to show them every facet of the job, skill, whatever, and we got to work through it until they got to a point where they’re confident in themselves — to start doing it themselves. And seeing that progression really makes it the best part of being in this job.”
Brad’s own experiences job searching and taking part in our programs helps him relate to the Empower3D participants and guide them in the process. He made it a point to incorporate wellness techniques that worked for him during the training.
“I have a lot of anxiety around applying for jobs,” he shares. “The way I grew up, it was all hard skills — dig a hole here, replace this part, fix the fence. And it was the soft skills that I really needed.”
One of the advantages of Empower3D is that the manufacturing sector is such a vast field of potential career opportunities that participants have the chance to find something that truly suits their interests.
“I wanted them to see the different things you could do in manufacturing,” he explains. “Being able to explore and find your passion, find something you’re interested in rather than just we have to have a job. We’re going to go through, we’re going to explore, and we’re going to find out something that you might not have known before.”
Having wrapped up the first cohort, he’s amazed to see the growth in his participants. Brad notes one participant entered the program feeling really discouraged about the job market, but by the end, they were taking the material to heart, they interviewed for and landed a job, and they’re now even attending networking events to further their career.
“He got the job, and just the beaming smile on his face — it was just amazing.”
Are you a youth with a disability interested in developing your skills and gaining valuable work experience in the manufacturing sector? Contact the Empower3D team at empower3d@neilsquire.ca or your nearest Neil Squire office to apply or for more information.
Read our other entries in our Empower3D Instructor Series: McRae
