CAREER TALK WITH MADISON MAIDMENT '11
In late November, Madison Maidment '11 visited the grades 9 to 12 students to give a presentation on preparing for a career in a field that may not yet exist. In the winter of 2016, she began working at coworker.com, which connects people and companies to coworking spaces around the world. The idea of coworking is still incredibly new to us, yet it was virtually nonexistent when Madison graduated from Balmoral Hall.
With studies showing that about 65% of the jobs we will have are not invented yet, it is critical that students are taught how to prepare for such jobs.
The main advice Madison had for us was to learn something from all classes, even if it is not the content of the course. The example that she gave came from a university religion class. Even though the subject of religion may not come up in her day-to-day life, the skills she took away from that course allowed her to write more creatively, make deeper connections with those around her, and increase her global awareness.
Madison also spoke about how her educational experience enabled her to be innovative. Throughout her presentation, it was evident that Madison was passionate about her work. She also mentioned the importance of finding what you love to do and creating a career around this.
Though Madison did say that there is a lot more she wishes to accomplish, her story of finding success in a relatively unexplored field relayed an incredibly important message.
By Sophie Schwartz, Grade 8
Also, on November 23, Madison Maidment '11 spoke to Grade 8 students about her job and how her education got her into technology when she had no technological background. After she graduated, she went into real estate and real estate development. She was designing call centres for large companies such as Netflix and Sephora, but that was not her dream job. While spending some time in Dubai, she stumbled across a coworker.com office space, which is a collaborative office where anyone can come and do their work. It is a place that embraces collaborative effort in a calm, relaxed workspace.
After a lot of persistence, Madison landed a job at coworker.com. Her role with coworker.com is as director of global partnerships. She also heads up the product and development team.
To get a job that was halfway across the world, while they were not actively hiring, her education at Balmoral Hall definitely helped, she says. Here, she learned how to think critically, how to think on a global level, and how to be confident. Her secondary education also taught her to strengthen her writing and verbal skills, improved her time management, and helped her create her own opportunities.
Her first job also gave her an edge. There, she learned negotiating skills and the importance of teamwork. She got her dream job by: first, identifying what she was passionate about; second, finding a group of people who were also passionate about the same and asking to join them; and third, being persistent, patient, working hard, and getting creative.
She taught us to appreciate our education now, and then really work hard for what we want.
Balmoral Hall School
630 Westminster Ave. Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada R3C 3S1
Tel: (204) 784-1600 | Fax: (204) 774-5534 | info@balmoralhall.ca
Charitable Registration No. 12994 3932 RR0001
Tel: (204) 784-1600 | Fax: (204) 774-5534 | info@balmoralhall.ca
Charitable Registration No. 12994 3932 RR0001
Our mission at Balmoral Hall School is to inspire girls’ imagination and the courage to excel, to reach, to lead, to care.
We are a nondenominational independent day and boarding school, educating students from Junior Nursery to Grade 12.
