The non-traditional tech journey is everything but a straight line. After completing 2 SWE boot camps between 2019-2022, and completing my first 6-month contract-paid fellowship position, I'm unemployed with a large looming question mark :

• where do I go from here in a job market where I'm getting rejected from $17/hour customer support positions?

Going through my contract position, I thought I was turned off by the technical side of things but the truth is, I didn't want to do THAT particular technical position. Now after 6 weeks of reflection and frustration, I realize I'm still interested in pursuing a software engineering role and I'm reluctantly willing to start over a 3rd time.

What will I do differently this time? I'll be completely self-taught. After completing 2 instructor-led SWE boot camps and taking a web development course on the side last year, I know the fundamentals and need to take the reigns to further my learning, build some projects and fill in the gaps in my technical education and understanding curated to the current job market.

If I take my time yet remain consistent, the next 6-12 months could look completely different. After job searching - literally applying for almost anything remote - and coming up completely short for the past 6 weeks, I'm realizing that maybe that's part of my answer: maybe this isn't the time to completely give up my dreams of becoming a software engineer and it's time to dig in and keep going even though everything around me seems to say the opposite.

So I'm going to try again. While I'm still seeking a remote position to bring in some extra cash for my household, I'm renewing my commitment to consistent daily learning and growing and furthering my technical pursuits because there's a reason I can't stop thinking about it and wondering "what if..".