Moving house usually means a new postal code in the country, but for many years, a new home for image consultant Denise Ng and her family involved crossing continents and time zones.
The youthful 40-something New Zealander moved seven times in 11 years on expatriate postings with her businessman husband.
"Life was a round of packing, unpacking and settling into a new environment - from Hong Kong to Karachi to Auckland to London, back to Singapore, then to New York and finally back here nine years ago," says Ms Ng.
Along the way, she raised three sons, got a degree in education and nurtured a myriad of interests.
The spice of life
She says: "I am someone who must constantly learn and be active in something."
To that end, she has chalked up knowledge and experiences since her first job as a part-time nurse-aid in a hospice at 16, while she was still in high school.
She later qualified as a nurse. Over seven years, she worked in several fields including neurosurgery, cardiology and psychiatry.
"I came into the profession as a result of parental expectations, I guess," she says. "I was a caring, quiet person, and since my father was a doctor and my mother a pharmacist, it was assumed that nursing would be suitable for me."
Ms Ng began to consider other careers after she moved here 20 years ago. "Nursing was not at the level for which I had been trained," she recalls. "So, I decided to change my profession."
But before she got down to it, she was moving to Hong Kong with her husband. "Career plans were put on hold while I had children and fulfilled a new role as an executive spouse," she says.
Then, on their London posting in 1993, she found a good fit in image consulting.
"A friend there was an image consultant and what she told me about her work fascinated me," she says.
"I had always thought about why certain colours and styles worked together, and having lived in so many places, I was interested in different cultures, their etiquette and communication styles."
Then a mother of two, she was completing a degree in education and later qualified to teach English as a second language.
"But I signed up for an image consulting course with no hesitation," she says.
Where the heart is
In 1997, Ms Ng founded Imago Image from home. "I wanted the flexibility to work part-time and manage my workload," she says.
She adds that her careers in nursing and teaching come in handy. "My knowledge of health, psychology, communication and teaching are all used now, but applied differently.
"I have a wide range of cross-cultural experience and extensive exposure to professional and diplomatic circles in different parts of the world.
"This helps me to give authentic, substantive advice on global etiquette and communication."
Best face forward
Imago's clients run the gamut of ages, occupations and group sizes. Whether they are looking for style adjustments or an image overhaul, Ms Ng is up to the challenge.
"As a one-man show, I often find that I am developing localised material on my own," she says.
"I get support from the Association of Image Consultants International (Aici), a worldwide network of consultants which offers opportunities to learn more about running, developing and marketing an image-related business."
So committed is she to her business and to raising the profile of image consultancy work here that two weeks ago, she was appointed to the board of directors of the Aici in Singapore.
Above all, Ms Ng enjoys helping clients better their lives and understand themselves better.
"My objective is to bring out the best in them, rather than change their whole persona," she says. "Clients have found making changes to their appearance to be very liberating."
