Very good overview of the situation. My experience matches yours pretty closely. One difference is that I received less feedback, but I think I also applied to fewer jobs (I didn't count, but I think it was fewer than 100).

One issue particular to me is that, even though I've been doing freelancing for all these years, I never specialised and I also haven't mastered a specific deliverable, for several reasons, including fear of choosing something that would become obsolete or fear of boredom. So my profile is light on depth.

I think I now need to do some soul-searching and find a path I can commit to. I think I have good general problem-solving skills, but I lack expertise in one particular thing, which seems to be more in demand. Or maybe I'm bad at selling my strengths (also because I've been bad at seeing them).

I've been rambling a little with this comment. Anyway, I appreciate you commenting and sharing the article.