After reading through our guide on how to discover your ideal job, hopefully you have a few different types jobs on your short list that you are looking at pursuing.

But how do you find job opportunities? Here are the 5 primary ways that we recommend:

Networking: throwing out feelers to your network is the most preferred method of learning about job opportunities. By leveraging your network, you are likely to hear about jobs that haven't been posted publicly (70% of jobs are never posted publicly) and you will have a referral to the hiring manager (85% of jobs are filled by either someone who has been referred over to the hiring manager or by someone they know personally).

Recruiters: this essentially is an extension of your own network. Think of a recruiter as someone who has a large network that you are able to tap into, and once the recruiter gets to know you, they can offer you a referral to the hiring manager. Typically, recruiters either work directly for the company you're looking to apply with, or they are independent and are paid a finder fee by the company. In either case, their job is to fill job vacancies.

LinkedIn: by far the largest resource to find and connect with other professionals. You can follow companies you're interested in and learn about job opportunities from them through LinkedIn.

Niche Job Boards: there are many niche specific job boards online. Doing a quick Google search will help you locate some within your area. These job boards are great as they can help minimize the noise that is present on many of the more generic job boards. And some companies may only use these niche sites to try and find more qualified candidates.

General Job Boards: if you're looking to expand the scope of your search, consider more general online job boards like Indeed. Consider setting up job alerts so that you'll be emailed if new job opportunities are posted that meet your search criteria. This way you don't have to continue returning to the site to spend time searching. Instead, the website will notify you if new jobs that match your criteria are posted.

Directly Contacting the Company: finally, most companies post their current job openings on their website. If you don't see any openings, consider reaching out to them directly by email or phone to inquire.

Often times, yes. Even though a referral may result in a quicker application process, the company will often want you to officially apply so that they can get your information into their systems and begin processing your application through their standard processes. Companies often use the initial job application as their way to get you entered into their HR system.

When pursuing job opportunities, it's important to stand out from other candidates. The best way to do this is through building your Personal Brand and through a referral from your network. A strong Personal Brand will help convey the value that you bring as a candidate to the job. And a referral is often the difference between getting an interview and ultimately a job offer.

If you aren't able to get a referral, don't fret. Using LinkedIn to try and reach the hiring manager, when done well, can work in lieu of a referral. In fact, I've had candidates that I did not know reach out to me directly through LinkedIn and I pushed them through our application tracking system (ATS) and into an initial interview. To the hiring manager, this can show resourcefulness and drive, which are two things I always look for in candidates.

Admittedly, it's a lot of work to read through job descriptions and update your resume and cover letter for each job that you apply to. But doing so will help tremendously. There are two things that you want to ensure is reflected from the job description onto your updated resume and cover letter:

Keyboards: when reading through the job description, if you noticed that there are certain words that are repeated and are given extra attention to, you'll want to ensure they are found on your resume and cover letter.

Bullet points: think through what the skills and qualifications the job description is asking for and tailor both your resume and cover letter to them. If the job description is putting a strong emphasis on budgeting experience, make sure to provide specific examples (ideally with numbers) to highlight your experience with budgeting.

Often times a tailored resume and cover letter is the difference between landing an interview and being skipped over. It's a wise investment of your time.

There are tools like Jobscan that can help automate this process by taking the job description and your resume and providing suggested changes.

80,000 Hours - lists job openings that are focused on solving the world's most pressing issues (climate change, social justice issues, etc.)

Jobot - after creating a profile, Jobot uses AI to try and match you up with job opportunities. If it finds any that it believes to be a good fit, it will email you details of the job.

Indeed - our favorite general job board

Before letting your network know you are entertaining new jobs, just keep in mind to be careful. There have been times when this information has gotten back to current employers and has caused issues for the employee. That said, I would always recommend starting with your network first by communicating with those you trust that you are looking at making a change. At the same time, I would also suggest reaching out to recruiters and searching through job boards and other online resources to locate job openings. As you find jobs that you would like to pursue, keep track of them using a job application tracker.

If you find jobs through online job boards, check with your network to see if they have contacts at the company. If not, try and connect with the hiring manager, or company, through LinkedIn.

It's just a matter of time before you find job openings that you're interested in pursuing. You've got this!