The beginning of the year is a great time for setting goals. So as we gear up for 2008, why not take an out-of-the-box approach to goal-setting and business planning.

For entrepreneurs, The Right-Brain Business Plan is a fun, creative way for envisioning your business success.

Forget those Excel spreadsheets and Word documents (at least for now!). First start off by connecting with your vision through images, colors, textures and other creative elements. By tapping into your right-brain intuition, you’ll let your imagination run wild and you’ll discover new perspectives and options that your logical left-brain may not have allowed.

To make your Right-Brain Business Plan, allow yourself to imagine what your business will look and feel like in the future.What values are you honoring in your professional ventures?Imagine where you do your work – what are the colors, textures, sights, sounds and smells of this place?Allow your senses to really take it all in.

Now it’s time to capture that experience in a creative way to keep you connecting with your vision.

Thumb through magazines, catalogs and other collateral for images that evoke what you discovered in your visualization.And be open to images that simply just speak to you.

Once you’ve collected all your pieces now it’s time to start putting it all together in a visual, interactive way.

Here are some ideas for crafting your own unique Right-Brain Business Plan:

• An accordion book makes a great, portable plan. The front side can be your vision and the back side all the details.
• A collaged box. Your vision and desired impact can cover the exterior and all the details and plans can go on the inside.
• A large vision board that you and other teammates can build together. Hang it up in a community space so you can all connect with your shared vision.
• A video montage complete with music, photos, video clips and words. A multi-media business plan can also be the foundation for an engaging marketing tool.

Now that you have a visual reminder that resonates with you, if you so desire, you can start to detail out the other pieces of a traditional plan.

What ideas do you have? I’d love to hear how you’re applying my creative approach to your own Right-Brain Business Plan.