I can relate to quite a lot to what you said. First of all, you need rest. I am not talking about weeks, but rather months. I once was in similar situation and

I can relate to quite a lot to what you said. First of all, you need rest. I am not talking about weeks, but rather months. I once was in similar situation and it took almost 5 months to start working little, another month to start working full time. I would also recommend therapy. I felt very directionless too, and therapy improved my life significantly. In that time I really gained courage to change things in my life and go my way. My final piece of advice is to go freelance. A while ago everyone wanted to work in a startup. But the startup life has made me very cynical. It turned out you give so much to a company that is not yours, and owners will really exploit everything you've got while trying to hustle you out of the ownership. In the end you work for their futures and money, not yourself. The only people that were truly happy working for startups I have seen were freelancers. They were paid fairly, had no unpaid overtime and did not have to participate in that shitshow. I am also bad at networking, but there are ways around it. It looks like you have a lot of experience and a broad skillset. There are freelancer agencies that can help. Usually they screen potential freelancers, have a interview and then they find projects for you (also I am getting best paying jobs through agencies). The main advantage of freelancing for me is that I am paid for every minute I work and not more. As a result, the employers don't abuse your time, because they have to pay for it, and you can control you time and work-life balance way better. Also I earn much more than I used to. I wish you all the best and would love to hear from you in the future. Let us know how you are doing. EDIT: Also, you are not a loser, you are human. Everyone in your position would feel the same, everyone learns through experience. I am very happy for you that you are asking these questions at 28. It took me 4 more years to do it myself.