I'm in my 3rd year and entering the writing stage from this September, so now I'm thinking about applying for postdoc positions. I'll be running out of money in September/October, so I hope to find a postdoc and start to work during my writing period cos I'm money hungry.
I've seen a few ads, and they require 'a publication list'. I'm very upset about this. I'll have no first-authored papers out of this PhD, but will have three co-authored papers. All three are being written, but none of them has been submitted yet. So can I list them in my 'publication list' in my CV? If not, then will I be eliminated from the game at the very beginning?
All the group mates of my year have a first-authored paper already published, and they're also looking for postdocs in this field, so I'm kind of worried - one published 1st authored vs three unpublished co-authored, am I at an advantage or disadvantage?
Also, I've got no prize or award during my PhD. By comparison, all the other group members have got a poster/talk prize at a conference. Does this put me at a disadvantage if I compete with them for the same position?
So if I have no publication no award how should I make my CV look better? Is there anything else I should stress, eg a detailed description of my research project? Or is there anything I can do in the coming months that can be added to my CV and makes my CV look more competitive?

I've never seen any self-funded PhD student get funding from the 2nd year of study, so I don't know if they exist.
I'm against doing a self-funded PhD. When doing a PhD, you're a tool used by your supervisor to achieve their research goals - usually they don't care about your development as a researcher or your future. Even if you're paying, your supervisor still sees you as their tool, so why pay to be used? It's only your loss. Also, if you're paying, you tend to look for part-time jobs, which consume lots of time and you'll finish your PhD later than you planned.

He didn't have funding for you at the moment you were interviewed? Then this supervisor seems unreliable...

If you didn't maintain a good relationship with your PhD supervisor and you don't think they have contributed to your work, then why contact them again. Then the only thing you need to think about is whether to add them in the acknowledgements. You are outside academia now, and your PhD supervisor can no longer influence your future, so you don't need to fear them any more.

Thanks to covid-19, we are in a lockdown, and no one knows how long it will last....I'm doing experimental science, but the lab is shut down....I'm feeling so anxious because apparently I have nothing to do! I can do no more experiment, and I've already analysed all the data from my old experiments.

My supervisor just tells me to write a chapter for my thesis. But doing the writing full-time is boring, so I hope I can do something else. Also, there'll be a 6-month period at the end of my PhD for writing the thesis, so I don't really need to work hard on it now. I have plenty of time now, but have nothing more meaningful to do.

I've heard another PhD student in my cohort has been assigned a side project by his supervisor for the lockdown period. I think that's a good idea. But when I asked my supervisor for a side project, he was like 'What side project? You don't need one. I'm sure you'll have enough data by the end for your thesis.' I didn't know what to say, but felt very disappointed. I emailed a postdoc, who's working in the same group as me, about how bored and anxious I'm feeling. I thought he would understand my feelings cos we share the same supervisor and do similar experiments. To my surprise, he didn't reply. But today I heard from someone else that my supervisor gave the postdoc a side project and he's busy working on it! You know how frustrated I'm feeling now! I'm even feeling angry. I've already written an email expressing my anger, but I'm hesitating whether I should send it to my supervisor right away!

My supervisor has done little to support my research....The only use of him is when my primary supervisor is away and I need a signature, he can do it on behalf of my primary supervisor...So don't expect too much from your second supervisor

It's better for them to ask their government or the EU to provide funding. The UK government is quite thrifty when it comes to funding foreign students.

Congrats sciencegirl3456! This is encouraging, but it also scares me because you mentioned the fact that you have been competing with lots of postdocs all the time! That means I will also need to compete with postdocs and stand out! But they have more lab experience, their experimental skills are better than mine, and they have more papers....All of these are daunting!
I'll try and improve my presentation skills and hopefully that will help me impress the search committee.

Thank you so much for your advice and encouragement, Jamie!
My supervisor cares only about his own career but not my development. His indifference to my needs has made me lose my confidence. I've already reminded him that I need more advice on my development, but he couldn't care less and just told me to follow his instruction. Well, at this moment, his instruction is that I have to tailor my data to other people's papers. I'm struggling to find enough rationale to convince him to give me a chance to write my own paper.