The Right-Brain Business Plan: An Interview with Jennifer Lee

Jennifer Lee of Artizen Coaching has just released a must have book for any creative striving for more focus and direction in their business, The Right-Brain Business Plan. Jennifer is currently "traveling" the globe on her blog book tour. We were lucky enough to get a chance to interview her.

What was the moment you knew you had to write "The Right-Brain Business Plan"?

The ideas behind The Right-Brain Business Plan developed over time. I made my first RBBP in 2007 and I expanded the approach through a 9-page illustrated e-book I did in 2008. I knew I had to write the book when I was at Book Expo America in 2009 and publishers expressed interest in getting a proposal for it! I went there with a whole other book in mind, but consistently people wanted to hear more about Right-Brain Business Plan and it was clear that was the book to start with!

How does your approach differ from "traditional" writing of business plans?

Rather than writing a boring, lengthy business plan and getting overwhelmed by complex spreadsheets, The Right-Brain Business Plan uses a visual and creative approach to help you get clear about how to grow your business. The Right-Brain Business Plan has the same basic building blocks as a traditional plan, but because we approach the planning through pictures, colors, emotion, and intuition, it’s business planning for the rest of us.

What can a right-brain business plan do for a creative entrepreneur? How would they use it?

A Right-Brain Business Plan helps you know where you’re headed and the steps to get there. It also helps you stay inspired by and connected with your vision for your business. It’s good to keep it out where you can see it, update it, and assess how you’re doing against your plan. And it can also be the foundation for a more traditional plan if you need to ask for funding.

Can you give us an example of one of the exercises in the book?

One of the key places to start is to get really clear about the big vision for your business. Where do you see yourself and your business a year from now, two years, or five years? What would really bring you joy? What impact are you making through your work? There is a guided visualization that walks you through imagining this future and that becomes the foundation for your Big-Vision Collage. You can download an mp3 recording of the Big Vision visualization plus free illustrated play sheets from the book on my site.

What sort of advice do you have for those of us trying to balance a strong, logical left-brain with an active right-brain?

Both sides bring their special gifts, so the key is knowing when to let each side lead. Let the right-brain kick things off with it’s big-picture thinking, imagination, and creativity, and then bring the left-brain in to help figure out the details, sequence steps, and take action.

What was your favorite part of the book to write?

It’s hard to pinpoint just one part that was my favorite to write. It was fun and challenging to write the whole thing. It was especially gratifying when I would get through a really stuck part and then all the pieces would start to come together. It was also fun to include success stories and pictures of people’s creative Right-Brain Business Plans.