I just look for similar U.S. jobs reports that have some kind of correlation to the NFP jobs report. For example, the ADP jobs report tells us how many new jobs were created in the U.S. non-farm private sector so it could give you a clue as to the direction the NFP report could take.
Although the U.S. ADP jobs report only takes the non-farm private sector into its calculation; you could use it as a guiding light.