While I may not be able to offer work of any kind, I can relate to your predicament. It's hard to sell yourself to certain companies these days (it seems) as they either have terribly low ambitions so if you go in and act like you want to rock the boat they appear almost afraid of you. That or they have ridiculously high expectations and so if you don't fit the image they have in mind the second you step through the door you barely get a genuine consideration; they are just not willing to train or take a risk. Straight in! Straight on! Nothing less!

I went to an interview the other day and was interviewed by the most junior management staff you could possibly imagine; we may as well held the interview in kindergarten ;-) The big managers were all on-site but just sat in their offices without even looking at me. These kids were so inexperienced at interviews, simply hid behind a clipboard and read questions one after the other, and if your answers drifted too far away from the notes on that board they just gave you this blank stare before moving onto the next question. Another interview the guy seemed so uninterested, as if I was just taking up his time, kept checking his phone while I was answering his questions. I wouldn't mind but his company asked me to go in to see them, then appears put out that I was there? I could have found more constructive interviews to attend I can tell you... No surprise I didn't get either role.

I don't know where the daring companies are these days either. The ones I've encountered appear scared of their own shadows... I have to believe that persistence will pay off; because I'm all out of ideas myself.