How to find a job that actually fits you
Most job searching is spray and pray: send the same CV to a hundred roles and hope. The alternative is cheaper and far more effective. Work out what fits before you apply, then apply properly to the few.
Start with what you want, not what is open
Before you look at a single listing, write down five things. The skills you are best at and enjoy using. The years of experience you can honestly claim. The location, or remote preference, you can commit to. The salary range that would keep you motivated. And the kinds of roles you have actually done. That list is your profile, and it is also the input every good matching system needs.
The point is not to be rigid. It is to have a baseline so you can tell a good match from a bad one quickly, instead of letting every listing look promising. A clear baseline also makes it easier to say no to the roles that would quietly drain you, which is a real skill on its own.
Score the match before you apply
For each job, estimate five things on a scale from zero to one hundred. How many of the required skills you have, and how strong they are. Whether your experience level fits the seniority they asked for. Whether the location works, including the commute or time zone. Whether the salary is inside the range you wrote down. And whether the title points in a direction you actually want to go.
That is exactly what a Fit Score computes, and doing it by hand once or twice teaches you what matters. Most people discover that one factor dominates their decisions: location for some, salary for others, missing skills for many.
Use the tool
MyJob.fit computes this for you: skill match, experience, location, salary, and title, with the matching and missing skills listed so you can see the reasoning, not just the number.
Apply to the few, properly
A tailored CV and a cover letter that references the actual requirements beat a generic application every time. The research is consistent: recruiters spend seconds on a first pass, and they are looking for evidence of fit, not a life story.
- Read the description twice and note the three requirements you match best.
- Rewrite your CV so those three are the first things a reader sees.
- Write a cover letter that names the role, the company, and what you would do in the first ninety days.
- Review everything once, then submit. Do not submit the first draft.
This approach means fewer applications in total. That is the point. Ten well-targeted applications with tailored materials outperform a hundred generic ones, and they take less time to produce because each one builds on the last.
Common questions
- What is a good Fit Score?
- Seventy or above is a strong match worth applying to. Fifty to sixty-nine means worth considering, usually with one clear weakness such as location or a missing skill. Below fifty is usually a poor use of your time.
- Should I only apply to jobs with a high score?
- No. Scores are a guide, not a verdict. Use a low score to understand why, such as a salary far from your range, and decide whether that trade-off is acceptable to you.
- How many jobs should I apply to per week?
- Quality beats volume. Five to ten tailored applications a week is a strong pace for most people. If you are applying to more than that, your materials are probably not tailored.
- Does this work for career switchers?
- Yes. The skill and title factors matter less for switchers; the experience and location factors carry more weight. Be honest about transferable skills and use the explanation to tell your story.
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Last updated 2026-08-01