The Love for Dance and Numbers
It was a wonderful privilege to photograph Nitrisha Zhang, MBA, Controller for Ryan Health. She shared some of her journey.
“Since high school, I wanted to be an accountant. I took a lot of math classes, and I did very well in them. Math and bookkeeping courses turned on the love for me. But so did dancing. For most of my childhood, I took ballet, modern, jazz, and tap classes. I thought I would become a dancer, but one day, my dad said, ‘No, dancers don’t make any money. Find a career that pays well.’ That sparked my interest and started me noticing my love for math and numbers. I realized I loved doing debits and credits. So, I took my love for dance and turned it into a love for numbers.
I pursued a B.B.A. in Accounting from Howard University in Washington, D.C, and an MBA from Long Island University. For the last 10 years, I have been a financial controller. My career steps were logically progressive and appropriate for my career. I started from the ground up. My first accounting job was as a staff accountant, and from there, I moved to a senior accountant position, working for different companies. Then, I became an accounting manager, and finally, I became a controller. Looking forward, I want to lead my next organization of choice. My five to 10 year goal is to be a CFO.
Throughout my career, with each new position, I gained different skills that built upon one another, enhancing and improving those skills. Loving what I do has helped me maintain a consistent zeal for numbers, people, and accounting. The finance arena, in general, improved my skills, and I continue to learn. I do not remain stagnant. I continue to enhance and develop. I am currently studying for the Certified Public Accountant (CPA) exam.
It requires a good deal of time, but it is worth it. I am applying those skills and knowledge to my current position to become a better leader.
But I haven’t forgotten my love for dancing; it remains close to my heart. Fitness matters to me, so I became a certified Zumba instructor. I am having a great time teaching Zumba fitness classes three times a week. I love putting my personality into it. It helps to destress the people in the class and me too! It is incredibly rewarding.
One of my students told me that I saved her life. She explained that she was very overweight, but due to attending the class, she lost a significant amount of weight, reducing her health issues. It is wonderful to help change people’s lives for the good and dance, too!
Working with Alissa was so phenomenal. I love my headshots; they turned out so good I chose three. The experience was wonderful!”