After Burt's Bees, What?

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So then, how is it launching startups at this stage in your life and career?

[Starting Burt's Bees] I was so incredibly driven by necessity and hardship to create a living for myself and the people I employed that I was very tense and very anxious. I never knew one day to the other if we would survive. Even after we matured and every outward measure was a success, I was never completely assured things would be OK.

I compare this to parenting. There is so much anxiety and lack of experience you never feel competent. The second business is like having a second child; the parents are more relaxed and believe that it will be OK, because you can draw on experience from the first one.

I have a lot more perspective now. There are certain predictable issues that come up, and I am not freaking out about them the way I used to when something came up. [I think to myself,] it's not a life or death situation, we can get through this.

By all accounts, you certainly don't need to launch another business, given the success of Burt's Bees. What is your motivation for doing so?

I'm an industrious person by nature. I have the energy level of an artist and craftsperson. My real satisfaction comes through production. I like to make things and see if what I made is approved in the marketplace.

It's not about money, even Burt's Bees was not about money—it was about pride in accomplishment. What I learned along the way was that money was a byproduct of making the right decisions more often than the wrong ones. That was the score, so to speak.

What would you say are the biggest lessons you learned from Burt's Bees?

I learned how to be a good negotiator and get to yes, so that a project could move forward instead of disintegrating into disagreement. It serves me with my environmental work, and in normal relationships with people.

Everybody has to win. I believe that. You will never make progress unless you fully take into consideration your opponent or adversary's point of view and make sure their needs are met.

Given your track record, is it easier this time around?

It's a little easier, because I know some of the steps to take. I don't have to stumble to become aware. I am able to avoid some of the mistakes I made the first time around. [For example,] I know about getting trademarks registered before going on the market and incorporating before starting the business.

Are the challenges different?

There is still the normal difficulty of running a business and creating a product that has market acceptance and people who are willing to pay for it. That is a challenge no matter what business you are in—there is unpredictably and necessary experimentation.

Obviously, that creates failures, but you have to go out there and take a risk or it's not going to work. I feel like I am always pushing myself onto unfamiliar territory, and that is always scary.

Does it ever get less scary?

I don't think so. There is the element of the unknown, and the unknown is scary no matter how many times you've been out there. You don't know the outcome; you can have intuition about things, but there are no guarantees.

What keeps you going?

The thrill. It has nothing to do with pursuing material comforts—that is not so important to me. But proving myself by going out on the edge to see what I am capable of is really important. Business is my proving ground. It is what I love to do. Just like a sport.

Perman is a staff writer for BusinessWeek.com in New York.