How to Find a Job You Love [Tips + Template]

Answer this question: Is your current job your dream job? If you’re wincing right now, you’re in good company.

According to recent research, only seven percent of workers say they’re currently working their dream job. Everybody else? They’re biding their time until they find a better fit, whether that means changing jobs (which 95 percent of workers are willing to do) or moving to an entirely new industry (which 92 percent of workers are open to).

But here’s the thing: You don’t want your next move—whether it’s finding your first “real” job opportunity out of college, switching to a similar job in a more suitable work environment, or looking for a new job in an entirely different industry—to feel like guesswork.

It’s smarter to commit to some self-discovery and take the time to understand what your dream job actually looks like. Doing so helps you approach your job search with intention, so you can move into your first or next role with a sense of determination rather than desperation.

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Struggling to find a  job you love? Sign up for Teal and explore the Job Board for free.

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How to choose a job you will love

Before you start scouring job descriptions or researching potential employers, you need to turn the magnifying glass on yourself. Understanding what makes you tick—your skills, desires, interests, and more—will help you find jobs that match. 

This self-analysis is well worth the effort. Research shows that liking your job improves your outlook, mental health, productivity, and performance.

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1. Identify your strengths

Start by being honest with yourself when evaluating your strengths and weaknesses. After all, it’s easier to find (and thrive in) a career when you have some relevant knowledge and skills.

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You can build self-awareness by:

• Taking an assessment: A career personality test like Teal’s Work Styles Assessment will analyze your answers to questions and give you valuable insight into roles and workplace environments that suit your strengths.
• Ask for feedback: Sometimes other people know you better than you know yourself. Asking former colleagues or close friends for opinions can surface valuable traits you've overlooked.
• Reflect on past feedback: From comments on projects to previous performance reviews, comb through the constructive criticism and praise you’ve received. This can clue you in on some of your proficiencies and development areas.
• Review common skills: It’s tough to think of skills off the top of your head. Review these lists of common resume soft skills and resume hard skills to pick out the ones that reflect your aptitudes.
• Work with a career coach: While a coach requires a bit of an investment, they can offer an unbiased opinion about where you excel and might even be able to give you an idea or two for a job that’s worth considering. When you choose your focus, they’ll also provide expert advice to instill confidence (so you can feel less afraid as you take those steps).

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2. Understand your interests

Of course, the goal here isn’t just to do something you’re good at—you want to do what you love. So, your passion and your interests matter too.

As you figure out how to choose a job you will love, look back on your previous experiences (whether they’re college projects, a past position, volunteer work, or anything in between) and ask yourself questions like:

• What tasks energized you?
• What tasks drained you?
• When were you at your best?

Dissecting the circumstances of your past successes and happiness and will help you surface job skills and aspects of your career that get you excited. Your dream job will need to balance both.

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3. Define your priorities

Job searching can be a lot like house hunting—hard to have it all. That’s why it’s important to determine what carries the most weight in your job hunt. 

Do you place a lot of emphasis on salary? Or does adequate work-life balance matter more? Are you exclusively looking for companies or nonprofits that align with your values? Or are you willing to expand your horizons as long as you can draw some sense of meaning from your work? 

These are hard questions to answer, but when it comes to figuring out how to find a job you love, they’re crucial. Start by identifying your must-haves and ranking nice-to-haves.

If you’re stuck, an assessment like Duke University’s values and prompts exercise will help you uncover your career values and identify the five that are most important to you.

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4. Research your options

It’s easy to get an idealized perception of what certain careers are like. To determine if the related jobs are realistic for your situation, you need to commit to some thorough research to get a better understanding of what to expect:

• Explore Teal’s career paths to understand the typical responsibilities associated with specific roles
• Comb through job descriptions for roles that interest you, paying close attention to the duties, qualifications, hard skills, and soft skills required
• Conduct informational interviews to talk with people who work in positions you're considering for an inside perspective
• Search YouTube for “[job title] day in the life” to watch vlogs and other behind-the-scenes videos to get an honest and new perspective on the roles you’re interested in
• Peruse resume examples for your target job title to see what experience and qualifications most people bring to those roles

All of the above can help you develop a deeper understanding of a job that’s rooted in fact rather than fantasy.

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5. Do a test run

A new job is a big decision. Fortunately, there are some different steps you can take to try a job on for size and confirm you’re on the right track, including:

• Use your free time to volunteer for a relevant organization where you can build your knowledge and try your hand at different types of work.
• Approach your current manager to talk about taking on a different type of project that allows you to stretch yourself and try something new.
• Join a related community organization, club, or employee resource group (ERG) where you can bring fresh ideas to the table outside the confines of your current position.
• Approach a hiring manager, career expert, or working professional to ask about job shadowing opportunities

These can help you get a more hands-on feel for the ins and outs of a position without jumping in with both feet.

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How to find a job you love

You’ve determined what you’re looking for—now it’s time to find it. Here’s your five-step action plan to narrow your search down to the roles that best match the “dream job” criteria you outlined above.

If you’re in a hurry to find a job you love on a deadline, check out this guide on how to find a job fast.

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1. Lean on your network

Job boards are usually the first place people turn to during the job hunt, yet according to some estimates, 70 to 80 percent of job openings are never advertised. That statistic is hard to confirm or disprove, but regardless, there’s a lot of value in leaning on your network as you look for suitable jobs.

Once you’re clear on what you’re looking for, reach out to past teachers, bosses, colleagues, coaches, friends, or any other person who could potentially alert you to open roles. 

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Job networking email template

Hi [Name],

I hope you’ve been doing well! [Add a personal update, anecdote, or memory].

I’m reaching out because I’m currently job searching and was hoping you could keep an eye out for relevant positions. I’m looking for [target job title] roles in [type of business or industry] and am open to working [on-site, remotely, or hybrid].

I’m skilled at [skill], [skill], and [skill] and am most interested in a company culture that is [adjective] and [adjective].

If you hear of anything that seems like a good match for me, I'd appreciate it if you’d send it my way. And of course, if there’s any way I can support you, I’m happy to return the favor.

Thanks in advance,

[Your Name]

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2. Search for open positions

Of course, while your network is a valuable resource, job boards have their place in your job hunt. There are plenty to choose from, including:

• Teal
• FlexJobs
• Indeed
• Wellfound
• ZipRecruiter

When you’re ready to get started, visit the sites on this list of job search apps, type your ideal job title into the search bar, and see what comes up. You can also reference this guide on how to find jobs on LinkedIn to search on that platform specifically.

Keep in mind that recruiters and employers might use different job titles to describe what you want to do. It’s worth searching for a variety of key terms.

Example

• Community Lead
• Community Manager
• Community Coordinator
• Community Development Manager
• Community Advocate

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3. Refine your search criteria

You went through the work to define your priorities. Now it’s time to surface jobs and opportunities that satisfy them.

This can be challenging, especially when many employers aren’t transparent about the nitty-gritty details of jobs or the work environment. But, with Teal’s Job Search feature, you have more control to narrow down to the positions that are the best match for you.

Within Teal, you can apply filters to your search results, including: 

• Minimum salary
• Minimum and maximum years of experience
• Part-time, full-time, or contract
• On-site, hybrid, or remote
• Keywords you want the job description to include
• Keywords you want to rule out

Use those filters to save yourself endless scrolling and only see the jobs that check the boxes.

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4. Research the company and role

Did you find a job that seems like the right match? Dig deeper to find out if they practice what they preach.

How to research companies

• Review the company website and blog
• Peruse the company’s social accounts
• Google the company to see recent updates or news stories
• Check out employee review sites like Glassdoor and Blind
• Search the company on forums like Reddit and Quora

This research process helps you confirm if the position and company are as good of a fit as it seems, and also gives you valuable insight you can use as you tailor your resume and prepare for interviews.

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5. Prepare your resume and application materials

You’ve done your due diligence and confirmed the job is worth applying to. Now you need to create a resume and cover letter that connects the dots between the job description and your qualifications.

Think of Teal’s AI Resume Builder as your personal, digital career counselor as you write your resume. You can access examples, prompts, and expert guidance to strengthen your resume. Attach a job description and use Teal’s Matching Mode to discover how well your resume aligns with the posting—and what additional keywords you can include.

Your resume matters, but don’t forget to also brush up your LinkedIn profile ahead of your job search. After all, 67 percent of hiring managers look at candidate LinkedIn profiles when deciding who should move forward in the process.

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How to use Teal to find a job you love

Teal’s Job Search feature, located within its platform and free to all users, works similar to other job boards.

Its filters, flexibility, and integration with the Job Tracker and Chrome extension are what differentiate it. While other job boards only let you save jobs you found through their platform, Teal's Chrome extensions lets you bookmark jobs around the web to your Teal Job Tracker for easy management and comparisons.

Teal's unique job search filters

• Full-time, part-time, or contract
• On-site, hybrid, or remote
• Minimum and maximum years of experience
• Lowest salary you’ll accept
• Keywords that you want in your next role (for example, “SEO”) and keywords you want to rule out (for example, “fast-paced”)
• Date role was posted

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Click the button to save a position to your Teal Job Tracker so you can access all the details to refine your application materials. If you have Teal+, you can also unlock all of the keywords related to a position to incorporate into your resume and stand out from the competition.

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Find (and land) a job you love

Whether you're looking to find a job while still employed or exploring career paths for your first job, your dream job might feel like a faraway fantasy right now. That doesn't mean you need to resign yourself to a career spent tolerating (or worse, dreading) your work.

The above steps and the right tools can help you not only identify and imagine your ideal job, but also make it your reality. Sign up for Teal to create your resume and find your dream job.