Post-Project Thoughts

By the numbers: this is what I accomplished in terms of my challenge to apply to 30 jobs in 30 days in October:

• 36 jobs applied by 10/29 
• 4 interviews 
• 1 offer, which I accepted
• 6 rejections
• 2 withdrawals of candidacy (pay was not in my range and the other, the initial pre-interview screening was too intensive for a local job)
• 1 notification of a hiring hold

Considering my goals of a 10% positive response rate and a 50% overall response rate, I fell a little short on my expectations.

• 8% positive response rate (based on the 36 applications as of today, though if I ran it off the original 30 applications goal, I would have hit my target)
• 30% overall response rate (based on 36 applications as of today, 36% if based on 30 apps)

I'm not upset though. I'm pleased I heard back from as many as I did. And I'm pleased that I was able to apply to as many as I did. It was a good experience to remind myself of a few things:

• I can do anything when I set my mind to it
• I am qualified for more than I think
• I can win people over with my attitude and personality
• I have great resources in my network and I am stronger and more confident when I ask for their advice and support

As far as my positivity challenge went, I didn't feel like I accomplished as much with it, and I didn't feel like I was as consistent with it, but I think that's partly because it's not as easily measurable as a completed job application is. And it could also be that I'm still being too hard on myself. That's still a work in progress, but again, with so many supportive people around me, it is getting easier to identify when I'm being too hard on myself.

What's next? 
I want to do more. I am still not where I want to be in terms of my positivity and in terms of my career, so I want to continue to focus and take steps to make those changes for myself. I haven't completely figured out how yet, but plans for a new 30-day challenge (or a few challenges) are in progress.

It is NaNoWriMo as well, but that's not a 30-day challenge I feel like I can tackle right now. I do want to write more, and make more progress on my current novel, but I haven't figured out what my priorities are yet with all these changes, so I don't know where that fits in yet.

I'm hoping to start a new challenge soon, but for now, I'm going to keep going with the applications and the positive self-talk as much as I can until the new plans are fully formed. Thanks for sticking with me, whoever you are.