I cold-applied to a number of jobs and didn't even receive a response from most. Did they pause hiring because of covid? Was my resume just not good enough? After about 2-3 weeks of this I finally folded and starting talking to recruiters. I had 3 final round interviews at companies who I'd love to work for within 2 weeks, ultimately resulting in my current job. That's just using recruiters' "networks". If you have someone in your own network that thinks highly enough of you, the entire interview process can sometimes end up being as quick and painless as grabbing a coffee.

My advice is to try and leave your pride at the door and just think of it as playing the game. There's no reason to handicap yourself when most people you're competing with will be playing at full strength - many of whom I'm sure are more arrogant than you ;)