The post PhD job market is challenging and completely demoralising. By the time I finished my PhD I had lost confidence in myself and my research. I had spent the past few months applying for a large number of postdoc jobs, sometimes getting to interview but never getting the job. As a result, I nearly didn’t apply for the ESRC postdoctoral fellowship. I knew I wanted to do more with my PhD and share my findings, but I felt that I had no chance of success. It was only thanks to encouraging feedback on my thesis from colleagues that I finally decided to apply.