1. Introduction

Political leadership is often described in terms of ideology, party structures, or academic background. Less visible, but no less important, are leaders who emerge from practical experience: those who have run businesses, employed staff, navigated bureaucracy, and solved problems that affect people’s lives every day. My own path into public life began through this route. I have spent over two decades working in construction, managing sites, running small businesses, and listening to people in my community share their concerns.

This article reflects on that journey, tracing how the experiences of self-employment, frontline delivery, and economic uncertainty shaped my decision to enter public service. My focus is not on political theory but on what happens when everyday working people decide that they can no longer wait for someone else to speak for them. My goal is to show how a life of practical work can translate into public leadership grounded in responsibility and results.

The lack of working-class representation in politics is not new. Scholars like Standing (2011) have described how entire social groups are excluded from the policymaking process, despite being directly impacted by it. Real representation must come from those who understand not only the statistics, but the lived reality behind them. As Ellis, Adams, and Bochner (2011) suggest, reflection through personal narrative can reveal those realities with clarity and power.

2. Foundations on the Building Site

I began my professional journey in 2003 when I launched Damien Reilly Construction in County Meath. Over the next several years, I built up a team of thirteen workers, delivering housing projects, renovations, and bespoke construction jobs throughout the region. The role demanded far more than technical skills. Every day involved managing cash flow, coordinating with suppliers, ensuring safety on site, and meeting the expectations of families who trusted us to build their homes. There was little margin for error and no one else to blame if things went wrong.

These years taught me the value of leadership under pressure. I learned how to train young workers, resolve conflicts, and adapt to changing regulations. I also experienced first-hand how policy affects small builders. Delays in planning permission, inconsistent enforcement of building codes, and limited support for apprenticeships were not abstract policy problems, they were the reason some projects stalled and some opportunities were lost.

Richard Sennett (2008) writes that craftsmanship involves doing something well for its own sake, but also as a form of ethical practice. I found this to be true in every aspect of my work. A well-finished house was not just a job completed, it was a commitment honoured. In this way, the building site became my first training ground for leadership. Over time, it became clear that the people shaping construction policy were often far removed from the people delivering the results. That distance between decision and impact is what first made me consider public service.

The Irish construction sector, particularly for small firms, operates in a highly regulated but uneven environment. According to recent reports from the Construction Industry Federation (2022), delays, cost inflation, and administrative burdens continue to disproportionately affect smaller contractors. My experience on the ground strongly reflects those findings.

3. Lessons from Business Ownership

After stepping away from construction, I broadened my experience through international business and management roles. Between 2013 and 2015, I worked as a project and HR manager for a mining company in Western Australia. This role involved managing diverse teams across remote sites, coordinating logistics, and ensuring safety in a high-risk environment. What stood out most was how leadership depended not only on policy compliance, but on interpersonal trust. Getting the job done required communication, mutual respect, and shared responsibility.

Later, from 2016 to 2018, I owned and operated Reilly’s Irish Bar in Tavira, Portugal. This venture required adapting to a new legal and cultural environment while building a local customer base from scratch. The pub became more than a business, it became a place of community and conversation. Customers shared not only their stories but their frustrations with bureaucracy, housing, and the cost of living. It reinforced for me that business ownership often means serving as a kind of unofficial social worker, listening and helping where possible.

Both experiences deepened my understanding of how different countries structure their economies, and how those structures either support or frustrate small business. They also revealed the strengths and limitations of government support systems. Whether dealing with Australian safety regulations or Portuguese tax systems, the common thread was that small operators often carry the heaviest load with the least support.

Recent OECD research (2022) on rural entrepreneurship highlights the importance of place-based support for local businesses, including better access to finance, mentorship, and simplified regulations. My own journey aligns strongly with this view. Each business I managed showed me how policies often miss their mark when they are developed without input from the people who will live and work under them.

4. Entering the Political Arena

By 2023, after years of working across industries, managing staff, dealing with bureaucracy, and serving local customers, I made the decision to run for public office. The idea had been building for some time. I had watched as businesses around me struggled with inconsistent support, as housing remained unaffordable for working families, and as rural communities like mine were increasingly left out of national conversations. I believed that someone who understood the system from the ground up, not just from reports or advisory roles, needed to step forward.

Running as an independent candidate in the 2024 general election was a challenge, but it was also a natural progression of the leadership I had already been practicing. I built my campaign the same way I had built my businesses: honestly, resourcefully, and with people in mind. Without a party machine behind me, I relied on grassroots engagement. I knocked on doors, listened to concerns, explained my ideas plainly, and remained accountable to my neighbours rather than a party line.

One of the key messages I brought forward was that politics should not be limited to professionals or those with insider connections. Political representation must reflect the people it serves. Research by Standring and Fisher (2022) highlights the growing public demand for more authentic, working-class voices in political institutions, voices that reflect everyday realities, not just academic theories or elite interests. This is especially important in areas like Meath, where many constituents feel disconnected from national policymaking.

During the campaign, I proposed practical policies that came directly from lived experience: a community action plan with transparent progress tracking, the revival of Article 48 to give citizens referendum rights, and the creation of rural development hubs to support housing, jobs, and local business growth. These proposals were not abstract ideas, they were based on real needs I had seen first-hand through my work.

While I did not win a seat in the 2024 election, the campaign strengthened my conviction that political renewal is possible, and that it begins with people who have built things, businesses, teams, livelihoods, and want to build something more. As Inglehart and Norris (2017) have argued, rebuilding trust in democratic systems requires both cultural representation and direct engagement. I remain committed to offering both, grounded not in ideology, but in practical service to my community.

5. From Representation to Responsibility

Stepping into the political arena made one thing clear: representation is not just about standing for election, but about taking responsibility for the everyday issues that affect people’s lives. My experience across construction, small business, and community service taught me that leadership is about showing up, following through, and delivering results, even when the systems around you make that difficult. In politics, that same principle must apply.

I believe that public representatives should not only speak on behalf of their communities but should actively translate complex systems into clear, accessible outcomes. Whether dealing with planning applications, accessing supports, or resolving local infrastructure issues, most citizens are not looking for ideology. They are looking for answers, action, and honesty. Having lived through these challenges myself, I know how disheartening it can be to hit a wall of red tape or to hear promises that never lead to practical solutions.

That is why I proposed a Community Action Plan during my campaign, a commitment to track local issues, provide regular updates, and maintain open-door accountability. This approach reflects what political theorist Hanna Pitkin (1967) defined as substantive representation: not just acting in someone’s name, but truly advancing their interests in a meaningful, measurable way.

In my view, good policy must be rooted in lived experience. When representatives have worked in the same systems they are now tasked with improving, their understanding is sharper and their priorities are clearer. This is especially relevant in regional development, where national decisions often fail to reflect rural or working-class realities. Fung (2006) has argued that democratic institutions become more effective when they incorporate participatory mechanisms, giving people not only a voice, but a role in shaping policy outcomes.

This belief in participatory accountability is what drives my continued political work. I am not interested in talking points or divisive debates. My goal is to deliver real outcomes: jobs, housing, investment, and support for the people and communities who built this country but are often overlooked in national discourse. Representation, to me, is not a slogan. It is a responsibility that should be earned through service, not just strategy.

6. Conclusion and Forward Outlook

The journey from tradesman to political candidate has not been a departure from my past, it has been a natural extension of it. Every project I completed, every team I managed, and every customer I served has helped shape my understanding of what leadership really means. It means delivering on your word, listening before acting, and standing with your community rather than above it.

My political work is grounded in the belief that Ireland needs more leaders who understand systems from the inside. People who have filled out the forms, met the payroll deadlines, dealt with inspectors, and navigated the contradictions of policy in real time. These experiences are not just relevant, they are essential. Without them, policy risks becoming disconnected, inefficient, and untrustworthy.

Looking ahead, my priorities remain clear. I want to help bring investment and job creation into communities that have long been left behind. I want to ensure that small businesses and local entrepreneurs are given real opportunities to thrive. And I want to continue building a model of transparent, accountable representation where people know exactly what their elected officials are doing on their behalf.

In an age where political trust is fragile, reconnecting leadership with real life is more important than ever. As Crick (2002) noted, democracy depends not just on institutions, but on participation, relevance, and the lived experience of those who serve. Similarly, Shortall (2014) has argued that rural communities need more than consultation, they need collaboration and investment that reflects their own priorities.

This article is not the end of my story, it is a reflection on where I have come from and where I intend to go. I remain committed to public service not because it is easy, but because I believe it is necessary. My hands may be calloused from years of work, but they are steady, and ready to help build something better.

References

Crick, B. (2002). Democracy: A very short introduction (2nd ed.). Oxford University Press.

Ellis, C., Adams, T. E., & Bochner, A. P. (2011). Autoethnography: An overview. Forum: Qualitative Social Research, 12(1), Article 10. https://doi.org/10.17169/fqs-12.1.1589

Fung, A. (2006). Varieties of participation in complex governance. Public Administration Review, 66(s1), 66–75. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1540-6210.2006.00667.x

Inglehart, R., & Norris, P. (2017). Cultural backlash: Trump, Brexit, and authoritarian populism. Cambridge University Press.

OECD. (2022). Strengthening entrepreneurship and economic development in rural Ireland. OECD Rural Policy Reviews. https://www.oecd.org/publications/

Pitkin, H. F. (1967). The concept of representation. University of California Press.

Sennett, R. (2008). The craftsman. Yale University Press.

Shortall, S. (2014). Rural development policy: What’s new? Sociologia Ruralis, 54(1), 117–128. https://doi.org/10.1111/soru.12009

Standing, G. (2011). The precariat: The new dangerous class. Bloomsbury Academic.

Standring, A., & Fisher, M. (2022). Working-class political representation: Between populism and policy neglect. Critical Policy Studies, 16(2), 234–251. https://doi.org/10.1080/19460171.2021.1930776

Construction Industry Federation. (2022). Annual review: Challenges and priorities for the SME construction sector in Ireland. https://cif.ie/publications/