Getting that long-coveted job abroad is a step up the (higher) ladder for career-oriented individuals.
The pay is good, and dreams are slowly becoming realities.
Everything seems to be falling into place, except there is a certain emptiness that even the trappings of success cannot fill.
Finding yourself in a new home is going to be less lonely and success more meaningful if you can share it with somebody.
These 5 tips for expat dating are excellent pointers on how to find love in cultural melting pots:

• Soak in your new home's language.
  Chinese puns are hard to render in English and vice versa.
  The only way to break that barrier and win funny guy points (or, for the ladies, be attractive to men) is to work up your language skills.
  There is no getting around it: How to find love starts with being able to strike a conversation, and a meaningful one at that.
  (Even if it is in sign language, you still have to learn the ropes.
  ) So take advantage of every opportunity - in shops, in theaters, in restaurants - to learn the dialect.
  Not only will you avoid people gossiping behind you, you also get to expand your circle and meet interesting natives.
  
• Brush up on your cross-cultural skills.
  Dating expats does not only mean going out with the locals.
  Talent comes from all corners of the globe, and chances are, they meet one another where the grass is always greener.
  So be prepared to learn as much as you can about various cultures, particularly the culture of the person you are interested or going out with.
  Asians may have general cultural traits in common (as do Africans or Europeans) but do not assume that what is standard in your native country is acceptable in another's.
  Do your homework, and you will avoid embarrassing gaffes in your journey on how to find love.
  
• Approach expats dating methodically.
  A lucky few can walk into a butcher's shop and find the man (or woman) of their dreams slicing meat.
  For the majority, finding an answer to "how can I find true love" is sometimes more of a science than an art.
  So write down the kind of partner you wish to meet and imagine the kind of places this person is likely to hang around.
  Is he or she a bibliophile? Finding a soulmate who adores printed pages is more likely to occur while checking out a book in a local library.
  
• Seek a partner online.
  When all else is said and done and you still come home empty-handed, why not let your fingers do the work instead? Online dating sites have mushroomed over the years because they no longer suffer from the stigma attached to them during the infancy of the World Wide Web.
  A healthy number of couples, especially those who are single after 40, have found lifelong partners through expats dating sites, and that avenue is as valid as finding a soulmate in a restaurant or workplace.
  Put on your best smile and complete your profile, then off you go.
  
• Remember that in expats dating, safety is the best policy.
  Your journey on how to find love need not be a scary affair, but sometimes it can end up in less-than-ideal circumstances.
  There is always a level of risk when meeting your date for the first time, no matter how well you know each other on the net.
  To safeguard your well-being, only agree to meet in a busy place.
  Crowd is a deterrent for carrying out malicious motives.
  Should you feel that the date is picking up at an uncomfortable pace, politely excuse yourself and call it a day.
  In dating, as in life, trusting your instincts will put you in good stead.