Becoming a successful businesswoman, Quince Chong had to sacrifice a lot of her private time and family life. When she joined Cathay, she was married with two sons, three and seven respectively, and she admitted it was difficult to balance her work and family life.

"My husband has been very supportive of me," she said with deep appreciation. "He gave up his job to take care of the family and the children, including their school work, so that I could concentrate on my work. It was difficult for him because society treated a 'full-time family man' as a very strange thing," she recalled.

Chong was pleased that her children accepted their mother's frequent absence from Hong Kong, but added, "As far as possible, I stayed with them at night and during the weekends while I was not flying. They sometimes joined activities that Cathay organized so that I could see them more."

As her children are bigger, she has more time to do what she likes such as singing, fitness work-outs and beauty care. She also enjoys meeting good (female) friends, which she finds relaxing because the work pressure is off after chatting with them.

She also likes to make the most of long haul business trips. "While onboard for more than 10 hours, I can enjoy my favorite movies and books. Of course, I also read documents," she said with a smile.

(HK Edition 01/22/2010 page4)