Tyson Nsimbe, alumnus, Accounting and Finance (BA)
Tyson Nsimbe is now an Accountant at FairFX PLC, after gaining a degree in Accounting and Finance, and he is now sharing his story on how he achieved his successChoosing LSBU
“I decided to study at London South Bank University (LSBU) after going through clearing. Honestly, I wanted to go to Kingston but I visited LSBU first and I felt positive about the energy at the university, which connected to me academically as well as personally.
Choosing LSBU was the best decision I made for myself.
Success is in my DNA
"I had been working in retail, but my family pestered me to finish my education. My mum cared for adults with disabilities and learning difficulties, and my dad was an accountant. Their jobs both involved helping people to help themselves so I knew I had the DNA to succeed in my course. Plus, I believed that with this degree I was guaranteed to have a prosperous career.
People who support me
"I remember every person who came into my academic life at LSBU, who helped me in some way and I want to acknowledge them:
John Syers, my year 1 leader, taught me the basics of accounting and finance. He really pushed me and motivated me.
Barry McCarthy (Uncle Barry) was an absolute legend from start to finish, not just a lecturer but a friend.
Libby Scott went from a foe to a friend, she said what she meant and meant what she said, I respected her because of her integrity.
John Syers' daughter, Dinusha, taught me and the rest of the class the art of articulation.
Ivor Pingu was an audit mastermind and opened my mind to the audit function.
What would accounting be without Excel? I owe my skill to course director Susie Wolstenholme, who taught me how to use it effectively and apply it to business.
Head of Accounting, Vijay Lee allowed us to express our accounting creativity and turn our passive knowledge into something active. He imparted knowledge in a way which made the most complex seminar, such as Foreign Exchange currency and risk, an absolute breeze for students.
Senior lecturer Joe Adomako helped push me through the Financial Account Concept and Creation, Consolidation module
And finally, Karen, who worked in the faculty office, gave me (and continues to give me) the information and resources I need to succeed in the finance industry.
Current role
"In my current role as an accountant, I am involved in so many areas of finance, from investigating unusual transactions and proposing solutions, to maintaining integrity of the general ledger and I report directly to the chief officers of the organisation.
Three biggest achievements
"To date, I have to say my three biggest work achievements are the automation of the month end bank reconciliation process (which took a full working day to complete and now only takes 5 minutes), and the fact I created a customer application and customer bank details form online. Both of these forms give customers a better experience when sharing their details.
Future vision
I have a clear vision for myself and where I want to be in the next five years. I am currently writing a book on how to get a first class degree. I want to write more books in the next few years. These books will talk about empowering individuals of all classes and backgrounds.
Get involved
I hope to be heavily involved in encouraging young people to get involved in politics through non-profit programmes. I want to affect change and getting young people who feel disenfranchised with politics involved in politics is a great place to start.
Helping people help themselves really keeps me motivated.
I enjoy identifying problems and creating solutions. I have extremely supportive colleagues and it helps to work in a place where I feel valued. In general, I have a positive outlook and feel that this is key to maintaining my motivation to be successful.
Learning
Since graduating in 2013, the most important thing I’ve learned is to keep learning. Whether it’s doing masters degree or free online courses, keep learning. You don’t have to learn a professional skill like coding or Prince2 - you could learn how to climb a tree or build a shed. The journey and growth you get with learning is what makes it so beneficial to you, your 9-5 isn’t everything. Gaining new skills is vital to your career progression.
My advice
My advice to anyone who wants to better themselves is every morning on a piece of paper, write 3 things you want to achieve or accomplish in the next 16 hours, and then do what’s necessary to achieve your 3 objectives before 10pm. It’s probably easier said than done, but make it a habit and it’s possible. I do it.
Chip away at your obstacles. It will be tough but keep believing, keep being persistent. Cut through the noise, keep your head above water, by all means, listen to everything but you don’t have to agree and or believe everything you hear. You’re smarter than you think.
Make the best decisions you can with the cards you’re dealt – you’ve made it this far and your best is yet to come.
I live by these points. They've helped me stay focused and I hope I can inspire other as well."
Contact
Tyson is an active alumnus and continues to give back by volunteering his time to speak to current students. If you're interested in being contacted in the future about speaking to students or want to find out more about how you can give back, just update your profile to let us know and you'll see a number of ways you can do this at the bottom of the page. you can also contact Tyson via email.