Teaching English is probably the single most common occupation for working abroad, and is discussed in its own article. It can be done both professionally, if you have the relevant degrees and experience, or more informally, say as part of a round the world journey.
Nearly all '''governments''' send staff abroad for various reasons, mainly long-term government employees but also consultants or contractors for particular projects. Government departments with offices abroad always include foreign affairs and often trade and immigration. Often in these services, junior employees spend some time "paying their dues" by working in Back-of-beyond-istan; you need some luck and seniority to get a posting to Geneva or Hong Kong. These jobs have all the usual benefits and problems of any civil service post. Often, though, there are extra allowances for "hardship posts", sometimes enough to pay off a mortgage over a few years.
Then there are '''government-run foreign aid''' organisations. Many countries have several of these. For example, Canada has CIDA [http://www.acdi-cida.gc.ca/index-e.htm], their main aid agency; working there has similar benefits to any other government job. They also have CUSO [http://www.cuso.org/] sending volunteers abroad; see Making a difference for more on such organisations.
'''Non Governmental Organizations''' (NGOs) employ professional expats all around the world. These include big, quasi-governmental entities such as UNESCO or the Asian Development Bank, as well as private development organizations such as CARE or World Vision. If you've got proven leadership ability, and an interest in third world development, many opportunities are available.
There are many jobs for various sorts of expert '''supporting off-shore work'''. A high-tech company with a development center in India, for example, will send some of its senior employees there and will hire many Indians, but there are still many niches that others might fill. Experienced project managers are hard to find anywhere and there may be a desperate shortage in times of rapid growth, Indian technical writers may need a native English speaker as editor, and so on.
The '''Petroleum Industry''' employs expats anywhere oil is extracted. Working on an oil rig can be a tough job, but the pay is good.
There are also many jobs for '''volunteers'''. See Making a difference.
Good resource for finding jobs in general are online recruitment sites such as [http://www.monster,com monster.com] and [http://www.careers-jobs.eu Careers & Jobs], which also offer advice for moving overseas and have listings of opportunities available by country. See also the Work section of country or region listings for local job hunting resources.
Companies regularly ship employees overseas for various reasons — to set up or manage factories, overseas branches or joint ventures with local firms, to deal with purchasing and subcontracting, to provide specialist expertise or training, and so on. If you're working at a multinational, contact the human resources department and see if they have any openings.
If you work for a company with factories abroad, spending a few years in one of them can be a good career move. Consider two young engineers, both with a year or two of experience at the same company. Alice takes an assignment abroad; Bob declines. For the next several years, Alice is one of three foreign staff at the factory, learning to troubleshoot all sorts of weird problems and working directly with the quite senior person who manages the whole show there. Bob is still one of the more junior guys on a team doing routine work back at headquarters. Guess which one has better promotion prospects.
If your company is transferring you overseas, ''never'' accept a pay cut. Yes, your expenses and taxes may be lower in the new country, but if your salary is cut you will lose the ability to save money and when you return, you will have a hard time clawing back up to your original salary, much less any raises that would otherwise have accrued.
If you're interested in temporary jobs, or your visa limits you to temporary jobs, there are a number of industries which often have work available:
If being hired by a foreign company to travel abroad then a visa is typically required. To obtain will normally require several things to be submitted to an embassy/consulate of the nation you plan on working in -
If your company can arrange accommodations for you, it's usually wise to take them up on the offer, at least until you get settled. Otherwise, look into long-stay accommodation like apartment hotels, which will allow you to get your feet out on the ground and explore in peace before taking the plunge. Sharing apartments with other expats is another common way of reducing hassle and expenses.
The Classifieds section of a local, expat-oriented newspaper or website is usually a great place to look for foreigner-friendly apartments.
If you opt to have a professional ship your belongings, you're usually looking at a big bill and wait of several months if you ship by sea, or a huge bill if you ship by air. Unless you're moving "for good", or have the company footing the bill (there and back!), you should aim to bring as little as possible. Importing a car or other motor vehicle anywhere is a ''major'' hassle. For furniture, household appliances and electronics it's usually far cheaper to buy new than ship. Books, on the other hand, can usually be shipped through ordinary mail surprisingly cheaply; ask about special rates for printed matter at your post office (in the United States, the key term is the "International M-Bag"). Most international moving companies can assit you on arrival in finding an apartment, getting a driver's license, or getting linked into the local expat community.
If you opt to bring all your worldly belongings with you, remember that airlines usually slap on steep excess freight charges if you exceed 20 kilograms.
A recommended solution would be to bring nothing more than clothing, a pc, and absolutely the bare necessities. Many expats are typically living abroad for no more than four years at a time. Often expats will purchase furniture in their destination and before returning home sell their furniture abroad. This will save you money, because you don't have to deal with the hassle of moving large objects abroad and when returning after selling off the furniture an expatriate returns with extra cash.
Your expenses will depend on the cost of living at your destination. North America, West Europe, Australia, the Middle East and Asia's richer countries (Japan, South Korea, Singapore, Hong Kong) will make a sizable dent in your budget, but poorer Asian, Central European, and East European nations are much more reasonable.
See also: '''Money'''
In countries and regions less connected to the "outside world" than other parts life can be dull and uneventful to cure this many expats often venture into the nearest capital or take a weekend trip to another country.
To cope with living abroad, familiarize yourself with the local customs and culture as much as possible. Try to get out and see more than what you normally would during the commute to and from work. Make new relationships; seek out new friends. In most countries, you'll generally find that the more polite and good natured you are towards the locals, the easier your stay will be, and you might even make some life-long friends in the process. The general idea is to NOT be a shut-in, get out and generate some life experiences for yourself. Remember, people are all made from the same materials, and we all have the same basic feelings. Those in other countries aren't much different from you. If you can wrap your head around that concept, you will have a much easier time acquainting yourself with your new surroundings.
A recent Forbes article covers a [http://www.forbes.com/2008/12/09/relocate-world-countries-employment08-forbeslife-cx_ds_1210friendly.html?feed=rss_popstories survey] of expat-friendly countries; Canada, Germany and Australia topped the list. The UAE was most difficult.