Day labor is a highly competitive informal labor market activity. Latino immigrant day laborers (mostly men) continue to dominate this labor market niche often facing the risk of becoming victims of labor law violations and abuse at the hands of employers. In addition to the risk and competition embedded in this labor market, Latin American day laborers must learn to interpret employer’s expectations, how to negotiate a deal based on an informal honorary system, and deal with figures of authority. This study investigates how Latino day laborers learn the ropes of this informal job-seeking activity to secure work. Based on in-depth interviews with 32 day male laborers and 10 months of ethnographic data in two informal hiring sites, -Rosedale and Lakeview- I analyze how Latino day laborers in Houston, find work in an informal market where few job offers exist. I argue that the process of waiting for work is key to understanding how day laborers learn the tricks of this job-seeking activity. I identify three strategies workers cultivate and enact - spatial, interactional, and transactional strategies- to avoid harassment from authorities, distinguish oneself from the on-site competition, and avoid rip-offs. This research contributes to the emerging literature on day labor by expanding the geographic scope of previous research and delineating the ways in how job opportunities are created, and risks are managed, despite their legal, social, and financial precarity of this labor market.