Nancy Katyal tells Shalaka Nalawade why image consultancy isn’t only about outer appearances and what she’s learnt while working for underprivileged children

What made you move from the corporate world to education?
Post marriage, I found it tough working out the balance between home and the demanding work hours and stress of the corporate world. It started affecting my health. So, I shifted to the education sector and started working with Amity University.

While working at the university I realised that soft skills was one area where the education sector could focus on.
From there, I got into storytelling. Along with my job, I started working as a storyteller. I approached Eric (Miller) as I found storytelling very intriguing.

My passion for it led to my working with an NGO, Akanksha, which works for underprivileged kids in Mumbai.

How was it working with Akanksha and underprivileged kids?
When I started working with Akanksha and became a part of a classroom of 35 kids, I encountered an altogether different world. I struggled initially as I did not know a single word of Marathi and the kids didn’t know a single word of Hindi. We relied mostly on sign language supported by English.

I remember, once my coordinator called me and told me that one of my gestures was inappropriate and might be misinterpreted by the children. I didn’t remember what gesture she was referring to. I must have shrugged my shoulders nonchalantly or something like that, but I realised that every gesture of mine was being interpreted.

It also made me think that a lot more could be said through non-verbal communication.

Is that what made you get into image consultancy?
Precisely. While working with those kids, I became aware of the importance of one’s image. But let me assure you, image consultancy is not just about outer appearances, it’s an amalgamation of four things
— communication, clothing, body language and etiquette.

I wanted to learn more about clothing because everyday at Akanksha, I saw people dressing shabbily so that they would fit in with the environment and the kids would not feel uncomfortable. Wearing flashy clothes or applying lipstick was a no-no. But one day I wore something dressy and to my surprise I found the children appreciating my way of dressing. They aspired to be like me. I realised that clothing did matter to one’s image.

Another time I had invited my househelp to my daughter’s birthday party at a hotel. She was slightly hesitant to attend the party and asked me, “Didi, what do I wear to the party?” I told her to wear whatever she was comfortable in and even gave her some grooming tips. I explained to her that going for a party necessarily did not mean wearing jazzy clothes and chunky jewellery. She was my muse during my initial days of image consultancy. Eventually it led to the foundation of my image consulting company — ThePerfectYou.

Being mother of an eight-year-old, how do you manage your firm and family?
If I arrive 10 minutes early for a meeting, I call my daughter or my husband. I make sure I spend as much time with my daughter as possible. We go on one-on-one dates where we only talk about what’s going on in her life. There are days when I have lots of work, so then I work late at night but I never compromise on my time with my family. I am truly blessed to have a supportive husband and daughter who encourage me a lot. I feel that the balancing act becomes tough when women try to burden themselves with a lot of unnecessary tasks, which causes stress and leaves little time for themselves. It’s not necessary for you to provide everything to your family, teach them to be self-reliant.