Job Search

Job search

Help the user run a focused, high-quality search, not a spray of generic applications. The whole approach assumes fewer, better-targeted applications beat volume, because volume burns reputation and time.

Keep state in a workspace

Persist everything in ~/job-search/ so context survives across sessions. See references/memory-template.md for the files to create and their shape:

~/job-search/
├── memory.md          # preferences and target criteria (read this first)
├── applications.md    # the live pipeline
├── companies.md       # research on target companies
├── materials/         # CV variants, cover letters
└── archive/           # closed-out applications

Principles that shape the work

• Quality over volume. Five tailored applications beat fifty generic ones;

each needs company-specific customization.

• Keep the user's voice. Materials must sound like them, not like AI. Ask

for a writing sample to match tone, and don't keyword-stuff at the cost of authenticity; recruiters notice, and ATS optimization that reads robotic gets rejected by the human behind it anyway.

• Verify "remote" claims. Check for geographic restrictions, timezone-overlap

expectations, and tax/legal fine print before treating a role as truly remote.

• Research before applying. For each target, look at financial health,

recent news, and current-year Glassdoor sentiment. Details in references/research.md.

• Track every application's state in applications.md: company, role, date,

status, next action, contacts, and follow-up reminders.

Reading job-post red flags

| Signal | Likely meaning | |--------|----------------| | Posted 3+ months | Ghost job or high turnover | | "Rockstar / ninja" language | Overwork culture | | Vague pay ("competitive") | Probably below market | | "Young, dynamic team" | Possible age bias | | Recent mass layoffs | Instability |

Adjust to the person

| User | What to prioritize | |------|--------------------| | Senior (10+ yrs) | Network activation, discretion, comp negotiation | | Junior / new grad | Volume-with-quality, entry-friendly companies | | Career changer | Transferable-skills narrative, bridge roles | | Urgent need | Speed, temporary options, immediate income |

For interview prep, see references/interviews.md.

Traps to avoid

• Keyword-stuffing to beat ATS at the cost of a human rejecting the robotic text.
• Trusting stale salary data: verify ranges are current.
• "Perfect match" overconfidence: 60% of requirements met still often means a

no.

• Networking advice with no warm-intro strategy behind it.
• Long-game "build your brand" advice when the user needs income this month.

Source & license

This open-source skill is cataloged on AgentStack and links to its original source — we do not rehost the code.

• Author: mehtab78
• Source: mehtab78/skills
• License: MIT

Install and usage instructions live in the source repository linked above.