From Tech Entrepreneur to Member of Parliament: One Founder’s Journey into Politics

What does it take to build something from nothing - a feature film, a tech company, a political career? Steffan Aquarone has done all three.  In this episode of One Million Conversations, I sit down with the Liberal Democrat MP for North Norfolk to discuss an extraordinary career - from producing a low budget, community-made, British feature film in an Oxfordshire village, through building and advising tech businesses, to winning a parliamentary seat he spent years working towards. Steffan talks about growing up in a single parent family, running a pub at eighteen, closing down a startup the night Brexit unravelled his funding round, and why the UK Government needs to find a way to encourage constructive conversations with people from all sides with all manners of viewpoints, to find a way forward as a country. But this conversation is ultimately about something bigger than one person's career. It's about why community matters, what it takes to make something happen and how to rally people together in support of an idea. Connect with Steffan directly: https://www.linkedin.com/in/steffanaquarone/ https://www.instagram.com/steffanaquarone/  https://bsky.app/profile/steffanaquarone.bsky.social  https://www.libdems.org.uk/mps/north-norfolk  Our conversation at a glance: Chapters 00:00:00 Introduction 00:05:22 Making things happen - a passion for community projects 00:10:37 The early experiences that informed his leadership style and confidence 00:13:58 Do entrepreneurs make good politicians? 00:16:07 Stepping out of the boardroom and into Politics 00:23:19 Closing down a business 00:25:21 The state of the UK tech industry 00:32:24 How do you actually become an MP? 00:36:50 The role of social media in reaching constituents 00:40:52 What makes Norfolk special 00:44:32 Steffan’s hopes and visions for the UK 00:47:44 Quickfire Questions