I use relative line numbers to go to the line I'm interested in, then use f to jump to a char, and comma to jump to the next matching char, or if I want to go inside a paren (say inside {}), I'll do vi{<Esc>. I also generously use f or F to go back and forth, or just '/' to search a few chars for where I want to jump.

Primeagen has a good video about horizontal motions: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qZO9A5F6BZs.