After more than 40 years in financial services, I sat down and did the work. Not because I had to. Because I needed to prove to myself I was serious about where I want to go next.
Last month, I passed the CFP® exam.
I took the CFP test on March 23rd, not because I had to, and not because anyone asked me to. After over 40 years in financial services, I sat down, did the work, and effective around April 20th, I get to say: John D. Anderson, CFP®.
Even writing that still feels a little strange.
After nine months, six courses, and a capstone, I walked into that exam, not entirely sure how it was going to go. I had done the work. But I also knew enough to know what I didn't know. When I saw the result, my first reaction was shock. Then relief. Then a level of excitement I probably didn't expect.
It's a humbling thing to go back to school after so many years. Sitting in my little rented timeshare office, punching out time value of money formulas on the HP12C, drilling on CLATs and CRATs, studying at night, questioning yourself a bit, and pushing through it anyway. Being by far the oldest person in that testing room was strange. But I was fortunate that I didn't start from scratch. I've spent years sitting across from hundreds, if not thousands, of great advisors, learning from them. That experience helps. It doesn't replace the work.
So, why then?
Truthfully, this isn't about the test or the credential. At the end of the day, the exam was just a hurdle. It wasn't the most important thing. What mattered was proving to myself that I was serious about where I want to go next.
That started to take shape back in the spring of 2025. I've always had a deep interest in financial literacy. I've seen what happens when people understand how money works, and I've seen what happens when they don't. But I also knew I didn't want to go down the path of teaching in a traditional sense. What stuck with me was something more fundamental: access to advice. Or more accurately, the lack of it.
There are so many people who could benefit from real financial advice and never get anywhere near it. Not because they don't care. Not because they aren't smart enough. The system simply isn't set up for them. Even today, basic financial principles aren't taught in most schools, and most people don't have the asset size to interest a financial advisor who makes a living on AUM fees or commissions.
Do something.
At some point, it stopped being something I just observed and became something I felt responsible to act on. And I knew that if I was going to do that in a meaningful way, I needed to do more and be more. I couldn't just talk about it. I couldn't just support it from the sidelines. If I was serious about helping bring real financial advice to underserved communities, I needed to hold myself to the same standard as the people I respect most in this profession.
For me, that meant earning the CFP. So that's what I did.
This is one step, not the destination.
There's more behind this, and more ahead. In the next couple of posts, I'll share what has been building in my thinking, the deeper "why," and eventually the "what" that I think can actually make a difference.
For now, I created this platform, TheProBonoPath.com, for anyone who wants to follow along. Maybe you're in a second chapter of your own. Maybe you've always said you'd get around to something like this someday. Maybe you hold the credential but haven't found the right way to use it. Maybe you just see a gap and aren't sure where to start.
Whatever brought you here: follow along. See what works and what doesn't. I'm glad I did the work so far. But now the real work begins. In my next post, I dig deeper into the why behind this decision.