Rushi Millns: From Technology and Teaching into Politics
After university, I stumbled into working for an ISP when very few people knew what the Internet industry was. So, by the time the Internet really took off I had over two years of experience working in the sector. The Dot Com boom was a phenomenal time to work in this industry. Not just because we were all twenty somethings making national decisions and influencing the international stage within our companies, but the technology we were working on was constantly emerging and we had to flex and move with it. We used to laugh and call it bleeding edge; cutting edge just was not raw enough. That was a long time ago now, in fact, I now talk about it as history in my lessons after retraining as a teacher in Computer Science.
My experience in the fast-paced world of technology has been a good grounding for politics where policies and priorities can, and do, change with each new administration. Managing and collaborating with teams across countries and in different time zones has honed my communication and team working skills, and working with people who have different priorities to my own has also helped.
My experience and knowledge, especially the digital side, has allowed me to make a real difference to the organisations I volunteer for. Whether it is setting up a community group on sustainability, or my work with the Conservative Women’s Organisation (CWO), I have moved the dial. It also enabled me to run an effective digital campaign when I stood as a parliamentary candidate in the 2019 General Election.
I still have Westminster aspirations, but I am loving my political journey. I enjoy the work I do with the Conservative Education Society on policy; sitting on the Advisory Council for CFID (Conservative Friends of International Development); being the Deputy Chairman Political in my local Association; and Deputy National Chairman of the CWO. I also have the honour of being President of the Association I stood in as a prospective parliamentary candidate. But the best part? Not only do I get to support and encourage more people into public life but, through the CWO, I work with some of the most phenomenal women in the Conservative Party.