I am proud of my efforts.

Two people prepare for the same interview with the same care. One gets it because the panel had already half-decided in the corridor. Outcomes are joint ventures with weather and timing and other people's Tuesdays.

Effort is the part with your name on it. It is also the part nobody else can assess — they only ever see the result, and they grade accordingly. Which leaves you as the sole available witness to the hours, and therefore the only one in any position to be properly pleased about them.