Following Your Convictions: Lessons from Sir Oliver Dowden’s Masterclass
Arya Nikam is a Politics and International Relations student at Royal Holloway University of London. Having interned at the House of Commons and worked as a Support Worker for people with learning disabilities for four years, her passion lies in advocacy and championing the voices of those who are often unheard or overlooked. She is the President of her Politics and IR society at university and takes part in Model UN during her free time.
Discovering that the former Deputy Prime Minister went to the secondary school ten minutes away from my house was a delightful discovery when I went to the Patchwork Masterclass on September 3rd. Sir Oliver Dowden, not only served as Deputy Prime Minister from 2023 to 2024 but also held various ministerial positions under the Conservative government alongside being the MP for Hertsmere since 2015. Our masterclass involved asking Dowden a series of questions ranging from the biggest challenges he faced whilst being in government to the green belt and the housing crisis.
From an external viewpoint, Dowden’s progression within his career seems to be the standard journey into politics: studying Law at Cambridge University, becoming a researcher in a political advisory firm and then making his way into the Conservative party and rising through the rankings. However after talking to him and gaining an insight into his life I realised the decisions he made to get to where he was today were not as straightforward as depicted; rather a series of choices that meant relying on your instincts and trusting your gut.
In fact, a word I noticed Sir Oliver often repeating during the session was “convictions” – he truly emphasised the importance of being bold and trusting your own ambitions and dreams. This notion was something that was particularly memorable and rather touching for me to hear. As someone who has lived most of their life in a state of flux – I’ve always been unable to decide whether I should follow my dreams and ambitions or choose a career that I know will guarantee me stability and reassurance (something particularly important to me and most people my age in this current political climate and pressing uncertainty in the job market). However, hearing Dowden’s words of wisdom was incredibly reassuring – especially knowing that he himself turned down a prestigious career in law due to the fact that his heart was not in it. And from that he managed to have one of the most politically diverse and interesting careers.
Towards the end of the session, Sir Oliver Dowden mentioned a phrase he had picked up when he went to Japan to teach English for a year, it was something along the lines of “If you have to pick between two paths, always pick the harder option”. This stuck with me after the masterclass, as I realised that Dowden was not just talking about careers but also our general lives and the decisions we all have to make to progress within society. I’d like to say a big thank you to Sir Oliver Dowden for answering all the questions submitted by the Patchworkers and for inspiring us all not only in regards to answering our questions but also for reminding us to be bold and daring, particularly in the world of politics.
