Clear Path Coaching and Consulting

I help small business owners who are great at their craft but feel overwhelmed as their business grows. When you go from doing the work you love to managing a team and navigating the complexities of a growing business, it’s easy to lose control. I guide business owners to build a clear plan that brings everything into focus. With a solid foundation and a team aligned with your vision, you’ll stop feeling like you’re putting out fires and start leading confidently—knowing exactly where your business is headed.

President & Chief Executive Coach

Executive Evolution Podcast

Host of the Executive Evolution podcast. Sharing the lessons learned by successful leaders to educate the next generation of leadership. So many leaders learned lessons the hard way. I created this podcast so you don't have to.

Host

Q & A on Breakthrough Leadership

Co Host

Butler University

Work with students in the MBA Program at Butler University Lacy School of Business. Focus is to supplement and personalize in-class learning, help to sustain positive change, and support new ways of thinking about situations. Additionally, I support student implementation of the MBA 510 LDP, participate in class as requested by the professor, and support Butler's leadership competencies.

MBA Program Executive Coach

Student Connections

Launched a wholly-owned subsidiary of Strada Education Network. Led a growing team of professionals and call center staff on the journey from startup to sale. Increased revenue by 900% in three years and grew the team from 25 to 70 employees. The company was named aTop Workplace in Indianapolis.

President

Strada Education Network (formerly USA Funds)

Senior Vice President, Business Development

Common Sense Student Loans

Providing consulting services to the higher education industry and serving as a guide for families negotiating the college financial aid process. Writing on student loan issues at www.commonsensestudentloans.com

Principal

JPMorgan Chase

Served as Senior Vice President – Sales, Customer Support, and Servicer Management for Chase Student Loans, a provider of  Private consumer loans to college and university students. Lead an organization of 65 in supporting sales, customer support, communications, and vendor management. Report directly to President, Student Loans with charter to analyze operations and make/execute data-driven decisions targeting reduced costs and increased efficiency for organization.

Senior Vice President

Served as Senior Vice President, Sales and Marketing with responsibilities for Affinity and Branch Sales teams, e-Commerce and International Student Loan Business, in addition to Campus Sales. Managed and built performance-based culture for all units.

Senior Vice President, National Sales and Marketing

ELM Resources

Served as Board Member in a variety of roles including one year as Vice Chairman.

Member, Board of Directors

Consumer Bankers Association Education Funding Committee

Served as member of the CBA Education Funding Committee representing JP Morgan Chase.

Committee Member

I equip accidental leaders with the leadership confidence, team-building expertise, and business acumen they need to build successful companies - No MBA required.

Your business is growing. But leading it doesn’t always feel clear, calm, or in control.

I work with small business owners and nonprofit leaders who are great at what they do, but never planned to become “the boss.” As their teams grow, so do the challenges they face. That’s where I come in.

I coach leaders who feel stuck in the weeds, pulled in every direction, or unsure how to lead at the next level. I help them shift from reacting to leading with intention.

My approach is simple. I provide clear frameworks that simplify planning, communication, and leadership development. These tools help you focus on what matters, delegate what doesn’t, and build a business that works without creating more work for you.

What’s it like to work with me?

I listen closely. I ask tough, honest questions. I bring structure without rigidity, and I create a space where you can be real about what’s working and what’s not. I’ve walked in your shoes and bring over 25 years of business and leadership experience to help you stay focused and follow through.

You don’t need a complicated playbook. You need a simple plan, strong habits, and a leadership mindset that matches the business you’re building.

That’s what I help you create.

If you’re ready to stop leading by instinct and start leading by design, send me a message here on LinkedIn or go to my website www.clearpathcoaches.com.

Craig P. Anderson

A client told me this year, “Craig, if you ever quit coaching, I’d hire you tomorrow.” 

But I’m not quitting. Because here’s what leaders like you accomplished in 2025:

⭐ A great operator who kept missing on interviews landed the leadership role he’d chased for years. We turned a list of stories into a tight narrative and prep plan he could deliver under pressure.

⭐ A newly promoted senior leader did a fast “tune-up” on vision, communication, and building alignment. His team now moves faster with less rework and clearer ownership.

⭐ An Executive Director navigated a long-tenured employee’s decline. We built a fair, respectful path that protected the mission and the culture.

This work matters because leaders shouldn’t need complex playbooks to earn credibility, align people, and finish important work. You need a simple plan, visible momentum, and a team that owns outcomes. 

So, yeah, I’m not ready to go back to work for someone, because this work is too important.

Where do you want to improve first in 2026: decisions, delegation, or communication? Comment with one word.

Executive Coach & Speaker for C-Suite and Senior Leaders | From Reactive To Focused | Strategic Planning, Delegation, Team Alignment | New Role & Expanded Scope Transitions | Executive Evolution Podcast Host

Executive coaching is not a penalty box for failing leaders.

Most of the executives I meet are not failing.
You are working hard. You care. You are just tired of sorting through everyone else’s agenda.

That is where coaching comes in.
You get one voice whose only job is your success.
No politics. No hidden agenda. No one to impress.

In this short video, I talk about why coaching is not about “fixing” you. It is about helping you:

•	Get clear on what success looks like for you
•	Cut through the noise and make better decisions
•	Build a path that matches your goals and your values

If you are ready for that kind of partnership, let’s talk.

Schedule an Executive Strategy Call and we will map out your next 90 days of focused leadership work together. Link in the first comment.

Coaching should not make you dependent on your coach
A lot of leaders think coaching is about getting answers.

“Tell me what to do. Fix this problem. Solve my team.”

Good coaching does something very different. It trains you to trust your own judgment.

Over time, coaching should help you:

- See your patterns with more honesty
- Make clearer decisions under pressure
- Have the tough conversations you keep avoiding
- Lead your team with confidence, not second-guessing

My job as a coach is not to sit on your shoulder forever like Jiminy Cricket. 

My job is to help you build the skills and self-awareness to lead well when I am not in the room.

As you think about your 2026 goals, ask yourself: "Where do I need to rely on myself more as a leader?"

Tell me your answer in the comments.

#leadershipcoaching #executivecoach #businessowner #selfawareness

Needing a leadership coach does not mean you are failing. It usually means you are finally serious about growing.

The crazy thing about being a leader is that you're constantly surrounded by people, yet you can still feel isolated and alone. Everyone who comes to you has some agenda. 

A leadership coach can be the one person in your career whose only interest is your success. The person who helps you get to clarity, stay focused on your goals, and keep you focused on what's important.

My coach is invaluable to me. They help me with perspective, build my self-awareness, and ask me the right questions.

As you enter 2026, think seriously about connecting with a coach. You'll be amazed by the results.

#ExecutiveCoaching #LeadershipDevelopment #ProfessionalGrowth #LeadershipCoaching #LeadWithPurpose

How I killed a meeting in front of 20 people. (It was the right move.)

A contractor booked an “important update” meeting on my calendar. I didn’t vet the agenda or the attendee list (my bad). I walked into a room packed with members of my team. 

Five minutes in, it was obvious. This wasn’t an update. It was a pitch to extend the contract.

I stood up. “This isn’t the right meeting, and not with this many people. Team, we're done here. Vendor, see me later.”

I was angry. I was also right.

Bad meetings drain profit, momentum, and morale. That’s why I teach my clients to run their business with a simple 5-meeting framework. And when a real problem needs deep focus, we use a War Room: one issue, the smallest group possible, 30 minutes.

Three tips:

- No agenda, no meeting. Define the decision or deliverable before sending the invite.
- Fewer seats, faster outcomes. If someone isn’t deciding or doing, they don’t attend.
- Use War Rooms for real problems. Thirty to sixty minutes. One owner. Clear next step.

Protect your team’s time. Push back on bloated “updates.” Lead with intention.

Want the 5-meeting framework? Comment “framework” and I’ll send it, or DM me for the PDF.

#leadership #productivity #meetings #operations

Stop trying to “finish 2025 strong.” Start building a stronger 2026.

There are five weeks left in 2025. One or two vanish to holidays. The question isn’t “How do I finish 2025?” It’s “How do I launch into 2026?”

Early in my leadership career, I’d hit this season and feel regret. Goals missed. Issues unresolved. (And then I'd make myself crazy trying to cram it all in. )

Why? Too often I lacked the courage, confidence, or leadership skills to make the moves that mattered.

The truth? I needed more confidence, better focus, and better leadership skills.

So I got serious.

I found mentors. I studied. I practiced.
I added real accountability with peers I trusted.

What changed?

- I had the tough conversations I’d been avoiding.
- I watched the leading indicators and stepped in sooner.
- I still made mistakes, but progress beat perfection. My career moved.

Want 2026 to be your leadership year? Join me live:
Wednesday, December 10, 12:00–1:00 p.m. ET.
Comment “Invite” or DM me “Invite” and I’ll send the details.

Stay Focused

#leadership #smallbusiness #management

“I don’t need 1:1s. I talk to my team every day.”

That sounds true. It’s not.

I worked with a leadership team drowning in meetings. Busy all day. Not enough done. The problem wasn’t effort. It was lack of focus.

A real 1:1 isn’t casual chatter. It’s a weekly coaching ritual. Fifteen to twenty minutes. Same agenda. Clear commitments. You give clarity on what matters and real-time feedback on how they’re doing.

Run this 1:1:

- Review the team’s top priorities.
- Confirm their personal priorities that drive those goals.
- Discuss one growth move: skill, system, or relationship.

It’s not about “checking in.” It’s about moving forward. The right work gets done. Alignment holds. People grow.

Would you like my 1:1 agenda and notes template? Let me know in the comments.

Stay Focused

#leadership #management #peopledevelopment

One of the things that held me back the most as a leader was that I wanted to be liked. And because I wanted to be liked, I didn't want to give anything other than positive feedback. If you did something wrong, I had a great strategy - I ignored it and hoped they'd figure it out.

<Narrator: They never figured it out.>

What I needed was a way to give feedback without it feeling like I was breaking a relationship. And after a lot of reading and coaching, I developed a feedback strategy. 

Check out this week's Executive Evolution newsletter to learn more.

#Leadership #PeopleManagement #ExecutiveEvolution #Feedback

Leaders don’t avoid feedback because they don’t care. They avoid it because it feels like conflict. But what if feedback wasn’t a confrontation at all

Open article: Treat Feedback As A Service, Not A Showdown by Craig P. Anderson • 2 min read

Treat Feedback As A Service, Not A Showdown

Before you talk to the team, get clear in your own head. 

When you have a clear and concise vision and three financial priorities defined, your team will run more smoothly. 

Those priorities will drive your meetings, feed your delegation, and save your calendar. 

Want to know more? Join me on December 10, registration details in the comments.

Leaders do not miss Q1 because of talent. They miss it to drift. If you are second-guessing under pressure or losing time to rework, this week’s Executive Evolution shows how to set execution-ready priorities your team can follow.

In the article:

 • What “execution-ready” priorities look like
 • A simple filter to choose what matters for Q1
 • How to make the plan visible and run a light cadence that gets work done

Live session next week: Stop the Drift: Set Three Priorities and Build Accountability for Q1 2026 Wednesday, December 10, at noon Eastern. In 45 minut

Open article: Decide with confidence under pressure: stop the drift before January. by Craig P. Anderson • 2 min read

Decide with confidence under pressure: stop the drift before January.

Most leaders say they will get serious about growth "next year."
Then January hits, the calendar fills, and nothing really changes.

If you want to lead differently in 2026, the next 6 weeks matter.

You do not need a big reinvention. You need a short, focused season of practice on the right skills:

✅ Self-awareness
✅ Difficult conversations
✅ Planning and focus
✅ Decisive action
✅ Feedback habits

If you build these skills now, your 2026 self will walk into the year calmer, clearer, and more confident.

Start building the leader you want to be today. Successful leaders do not wait for the calendar to save them.

Which of these five skills will your future self thank you for practicing first?

#leadership #executiveleadership #smallbusinessowner #leadershipdevelopment

Your 2026 Leadership Success Starts Now!

It’s not too late to align your business for 2026. But you have to start now.
In organizations under 100 people, the biggest drag on results is misalignment. 

✅ Too many priorities. 
✅ No clear owners. 
✅ Confusing meetings.

The result? Decisions stall, the wrong work gets done, and goals get missed.
If that sounds familiar, here’s how to fix it in December:

Pick a short list of Q1 priorities. Make each measurable with a number and a date.

🎯 Assign one owner per priority. No co-ownership.
🎯 Use a simple meeting rhythm to stay aligned and accountable.
🎯 Hold positive, forward-looking conversations about delegation and accountability.

Do this, and you’ll hit goals faster, finish projects on time, and help your team feel what success looks like.

Want help applying this now?

I’m teaching a live webinar on Wednesday, December 10: simple tools to align your team and set up a strong 2026. You’ll leave with actions you can take in December.

Details and registration link in the first comment.

Many leaders are just starting to think about 2026.

If you had to pick one area to grow in over the next few months, which would move the needle most for you as a leader?

Vote, then drop a comment with one specific situation where this shows up for you. Your future self will be glad you named it.

#leadership #executiveleadership #smallbusinessleaders #leadershipdevelopment

Which leadership skill will matter most for your 2026 goals?

Second Freedom

Second Freedom helps individuals, teams, and organizations lead more effectively in a volatile, uncertain, complex, and ambiguous (VUCA) world. 

Throughout our decades of experience, we’ve found that VUCA leadership effectiveness can be measured, developed, and sustained. 

WHAT IS SECOND FREEDOM?
First Freedom means you have become free of what other people think of and expect from you. You reach Second Freedom by becoming free of yourself.

HOW DO WE HELP YOU REACH SECOND FREEDOM?
Once you realize that what got you here won't get you there, we help you by measuring, developing, and sustaining your leadership effectiveness through our whole systems approach to leadership development. 

WHAT SETS OUR APPROACH APART?
➤ We have developed a unique three-dimensional measurement process modeled after a high-performance athletic program.

➤ We leverage neuroplasticity to rewire the brain to think and act more effectively in the context of complexity.

➤ We create a collective learning environment that supports individual learning.

We also offer an ACTP-accredited Transformational Coaching Program for leaders, HR specialists, and coaches.

CEO & Executive Coach

Global Coaching Group

I joined this global team of executive coaches and organizational transformation experts to work as a member of their network. Key engagements include:

➤ Adidas – For two years, I coached a number of senior leaders and worked internally with their HR and leadership to facilitate their internal coaching program to build a pool of leaders trained to coach junior staff and emerging managers. I also served as a mentor for their newly trained internal coaches.

Executive Coach & Leadership Program Facilitator 

Not Knowing Leadership

I founded this firm to provide transformational leadership coaching for executives, leadership teams, and entire organizations and to serve as a catalyst for meaningful change.  

Key clients include Airbus, Kraft Foods / Mondelez, Bayer Pharmaceuticals, and many other global, enterprise-level companies across banking and financial services, manufacturing, automotive, technology, media and entertainment, fashion, and power/energy sectors. 

My programs include:

The “Not-Knowing Leadership Program” founded on three pillars: executive leadership team journeys, coaching culture as a foundation for an agile organization, and development practices for continual learning and structural reorganization. 

The Transformational Leadership Coaching Program, a business coaching program that earned ACTP accreditation by the IFC, the highest accreditation level possible. I tailor this program for businesses depending on the company’s needs to help internal staff coach other employees to foster a learning organization and promote retention, morale, and mentoring for junior leaders.

Founder & Lead Executive Coach – Leadership Coach & Transformation Facilitator

next U GmbH

I joined this boutique consulting firm to train companies to become agile organizations and to implement NextU’s agile transformation program based on the renowned “collegial leadership” approach by Bernd Oestereich and Claudia Schröder. My key engagements included social media / technology platforms and large-scale nonprofits including:

4,000-person Nonprofit - I kicked off a complete system transformation process that included coaching their two CEOs and implementing the program across their 12-person leadership team. This effort resulted in the organization transforming into an agile and conscious teal organization as described by Frederic Laloux in his famous book “Reinventing Organizations.”

Agile Consultant to NextU 

[: co-vadis] executive excellence

I was accepted to serve as an executive coach by co-vadis, an elite network of coaches across Germany focused on executive excellence that was acquired by Heidrick & Struggles in 2019. In addition to providing one-on-one executive coaching and leading the firm’s business coaching program, I designed and implemented leadership development programs spanning negotiation, team leadership, team trust, team high performance, and more for global executive teams and workforces. 

A few of my key engagements included: 

➤ Bayer – I helped develop an international leadership development program and then rolled it out across seven countries in Africa, the Middle East, and Europe. 

➤ Airbus – I worked to reassess members of their long-time internal coaching pool and perform quality control based on the International Coaching Federation’s core competencies and standards to improve their internal coaching program. 

➤ Rhenus Logistics – I was brought in by the HR lead (and former coaching program participant) to deliver a leadership development program related to leading with empathy and intuition for leaders of this multinational logistics service provider. After the success of the program in the first year, Rhenus asked me to expand the program and I delivered it to hundreds of their leaders over four years.  

➤ Tecis – By implementing a leadership development program centered on transformational leadership, coaching culture, nonviolent communication, and continuous culture development over several years, I was able to transform their morale and purpose in ways they didn’t think was possible. Several years of hard work allowed this culture that had been driven by fear, distrust, and even hate to transform into one of openness, constant learning, and putting human potential first.

➤ Knorr Brake Company – I partnered with their 20-person European leadership team over three years to help prepare them for their IPO.

Senior Executive Coach

PARADIGMA coaching I consulting

Inhaberin

KERN The Succession Specialists 

After more than ten years as a speech therapist, I began my journey to become an executive leadership coach to work with professionals who could take full ownership and responsibility for their actions and outcomes. 

Shortly after relocating to Bremen, Germany, I joined KERN to provide executive coaching and leadership development for potential successors being vetted for CEO and president roles.

Senior Coach

Speech Pathology Pathologist – Marion G.

To deepen my work in speech therapy beyond diagnostics and consulting, I launched my own practice and later expanded to include a holistic support system for children and their families. Our team included speech therapists, a children’s psychologist, an art therapist, and a music therapist.

Founder & Lead Speech Language Pathologist

Social Pediatric Center – Children’s Clinic Princess Margaret – Darmstadt 

After working for a couple of private practices, I joined this social pediatrics center affiliated with a children’s hospital where I was able to work collaboratively with a team of psychologists, neuro-pediatricians, social workers, and others to work across the whole family system. During this time, I led all diagnostic testing and family systems consulting as the head speech therapist.

Head of the Department of Speech Language Pathology

What if the real issue is that you’ve outgrown who you had to be?

You've mastered leadership. But does it still feel like yours?
After two decades of walking alongside pioneering executives, and high-capacity changemakers across the globe, I’ve learned this:

❌ 𝚆𝚎 𝚍𝚘𝚗’𝚝 𝚎𝚟𝚘𝚕𝚟𝚎 𝚋𝚢 𝚊𝚍𝚍𝚒𝚗𝚐 𝚖𝚘𝚛𝚎 𝚜𝚝𝚛𝚊𝚝𝚎𝚐𝚒𝚎𝚜.
✅ We evolve by becoming more congruent

Most senior leaders reach a moment where their outer success masks an inner dissonance.
The outer success remains, but something inside has shifted, the old leadership mask no longer fits.
Not because you’re failing - but because you’ve outgrown who you had to be.
And yet... there’s no map for this.

Just the quiet ache of:
“𝚃𝚑𝚒𝚜 𝚒𝚜𝚗’𝚝 𝚚𝚞𝚒𝚝𝚎 𝚒𝚝 𝚊𝚗𝚢𝚖𝚘𝚛𝚎.”

That’s the moment my work is built for.

★ 𝗬𝗼𝘂 𝗳𝗲𝗲𝗹 𝗹𝗶𝗸𝗲 𝘆𝗼𝘂’𝘃𝗲 𝗼𝘂𝘁𝗴𝗿𝗼𝘄𝗻 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗺𝗮𝘀𝗸 - 𝗯𝘂𝘁 𝘆𝗼𝘂’𝗿𝗲 𝗻𝗼𝘁 𝘀𝘂𝗿𝗲 𝘄𝗵𝗮𝘁’𝘀 𝗻𝗲𝘅𝘁.
★ 𝗬𝗼𝘂’𝗿𝗲 𝘁𝗶𝗿𝗲𝗱 𝗼𝗳 𝗹𝗲𝗮𝗱𝗲𝗿𝘀𝗵𝗶𝗽 𝘁𝗵𝗲𝗮𝘁𝗲𝗿 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝗹𝗼𝗻𝗴 𝗳𝗼𝗿 𝘁𝗿𝘂𝘁𝗵, 𝗮𝗹𝗶𝗴𝗻𝗺𝗲𝗻𝘁, 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝗿𝗲𝗮𝗹𝗻𝗲𝘀𝘀.
★ 𝗬𝗼𝘂’𝗿𝗲 𝗼𝗽𝗲𝗻 𝘁𝗼 𝗰𝗼𝘂𝗿𝗮𝗴𝗲𝗼𝘂𝘀 𝗺𝗶𝗿𝗿𝗼𝗿𝘀, 𝗱𝗲𝗲𝗽 𝗿𝗲𝗳𝗹𝗲𝗰𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻, 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝗰𝗼𝗻𝘃𝗲𝗿𝘀𝗮𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻𝘀 𝘁𝗵𝗮𝘁 𝗱𝗼𝗻’𝘁 𝗽𝗹𝗮𝘆 𝘀𝗮𝗳𝗲.
★ 𝗬𝗼𝘂’𝗿𝗲 𝗱𝗼𝗻𝗲 𝘀𝗮𝗰𝗿𝗶𝗳𝗶𝗰𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝘆𝗼𝘂𝗿 𝗵𝘂𝗺𝗮𝗻𝗶𝘁𝘆 𝗳𝗼𝗿 𝗽𝗲𝗿𝗳𝗼𝗿𝗺𝗮𝗻𝗰𝗲 𝗺𝗲𝘁𝗿𝗶𝗰𝘀.

I create transformational spaces for leaders in the “messy middle” -  no longer who they were, not yet anchored in who they’re becoming.
Together, we dismantle old reflexes of control, power-over, perfectionism, and over-responsibility - not to weaken your leadership, but to deepen it.

We explore new power:
Not domination. Not performance.
But presence. Partnership. Collaboration.

And we do it best with others walking the same edge - a powerful peer field of high-capacity leaders ready to lead from their integrated self, not just from strategy.

This isn’t about becoming more impressive.
It’s about becoming more you.

We unlock your deepest power: the ability to lead as who you truly are.
And that’s the kind of leadership the future needs.

🚨  If this speaks to you - even quietly - don't ignore it.
DM me “CURIOUS” and we'll explore what's in it for you.
Because you’re not lost. You’re evolving.
Let’s walk that shift - together.

taplio

The Battle

Craig P. Anderson

Marion Riehemann MCC

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The Battle

Craig P. Anderson

Marion Riehemann MCC

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Posts

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Performance Score.css-goub6s{font-size:var(--chakra-fontSizes-md);font-weight:500;color:var(--chakra-colors-gray-600);display:block;margin-top:var(--chakra-space-1);}Craig P. Anderson's LinkedIn Performance

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