I don't have a multimeter and I'm running low on my guitar budget after the pickups, soldering gear, extra wires, and etc. Might just consider taking it to a pro next week and just paying them copious amounts of money to fix it all. I'm using a stereo plug- did I solder to the wrong hot output? There was two and I soldered to one of them. Should I have soldered to the other?
This is one of the things the multimeter will help with. Standard guitar plugs are a TS plug. The Tip is the positive, and the Sleeve is ground. It's easiest with a multimeter to test continuity with a guitar cord in the jack put a probe on the tip and then put a probe on a lug on the back of the jack, if the meter beeps you found the right lug. Alternatively, if you can find a diagram of your jack on line you can follow that.
How are your soldering skills?
Here is a good lesson Basic Soldering Lessons 1 - 9 - YouTube
My suggestion to Learn is get that 22awg stranded wire, strip 3/8 - 1/2 inch, apply electronic flux, tin the wire, and then snip it off. Repeat 20-30 times paying attention to how the solder flows and getting the right amount of solder on the wire.