The Art of Making Sh!t Up

Work together to up your chances of business success

The Art of Making Sh!t Up combines the lessons learned from a personal journey with the teachings derived from years of honing valuable skills through performing and presenting to thousands of people to demonstrate how working together has helped others found and grow several multimillion-dollar companies.

By focusing on topics that serve as pain points and detailing the tools and techniques of improv, this book helps people and organizations utilize new skill sets to be more productive, more accepting, and more "all in" to create a stronger teammate and team.

• Remove the fear of failure
• Recognize when and how to trust your instincts
• Celebrate and embrace the ideas of others
• Listen effectively—to both people and your environment

Thinking is hard. Listening is easy—and is most often the springboard to huge ideas. Find out how it can work for you with The Art of Making Sh!t Up.

Introduction ix

Chapter 1 I Am Who I Say I Am 1

Chapter 2 Listening to Understand 9

Chapter 3 Building Off of Other People's Ideas 17

Chapter 4 From Spark to Flame 23

Chapter 5 The Fear of Looking Stupid 33

Chapter 6 People Don't Think about You as Much as You Think They Do 37

Chapter 7 Facing Failure: Be Wrong to Be Right 45

Chapter 8 Heightening 55

Chapter 9 Yes and, Maybe, No 61

Chapter 10 Small Decisions Add Up 77

Chapter 11 The Cult Factor 85

Chapter 12 Be Patiently Impatient 93

Chapter 13 Pain Tolerance 99

Chapter 14 Luck Is Like a Train 105

Chapter 15 Fire the Assholes 109

Chapter 16 Ushers, Vomit, and Why People Clean Bathrooms 113

Chapter 17 Diversity Is a Choice 119

Chapter 18 Are You Worth $10 an Hour? 123

Chapter 19 Nobody Knows Anything 127

Chapter 20 Who Gives a Shit? 131

Chapter 21 Everything I Know in Business I Learned from Coaching Girls Softball 135

Chapter 22 Trapped in the Bowels of the Grand Bazaar 145

Chapter 23 The Ambassador and the Bathroom 149

Chapter 24 China Talk 153

Author’s Note on "Shit" 163

Acknowledgments 165

About the Author 167

Index 169

NORM LAVIOLETTE is the Co-founder of Improv Asylum, IA innovation, Laugh Boston, and Asylum Gaming and Esports (AGE). He leads Improv Asylum and IA Innovation’s strategic business and artistic vision locally, nationally and globally. Norm has firsthand experience in building companies from start-up to multimillion-dollar businesses. Norm knows why culture is integral to long-term success and has built a team that exemplifies why communicating, listening and trusting are so important.

Discover how a creative mindset can help you live up to your potential, remove fear, and embrace innovation

Norm Laviolette has honed his talents through performing and presenting to thousands of people over the years. His unique comedy-inspired corporate training programs have been wildly successful, helping organizations such as Intel, Google, Twitter, and Nokia enhance their corporate cultures, strengthen teamwork and leadership, and instill powerful communication skills. His innovative blend of improvisation techniques and effective team-building methods has inspired and motivated people around the world.

The Art of Making Sh!t Up: Using the Principles of Improv to Become an Unstoppable Powerhouse shares the lessons Norm has learned from his personal experiences founding and growing several multimillion-dollar companies. This engaging, lively, and sometimes irreverent book enables anyone to discover, develop, and employ their creative mindset. Unforgettable chapters—with titles such as Ushers, Vomit, and Why People Clean Bathrooms, The Fear of Looking Stupid, Patiently Impatient, and People Don’t think About You as Much As You Think They Do—take readers on a humorous, yet meaningful, journey to creative freedom, personal growth, and professional success.
The Art of Making Sh!t Up enables readers to:

• Remove the fear of failure and ignite the creative mindset within you
• Learn to listen to yourself and recognize when and how to trust your instincts
• Embrace and celebrate the ideas of others to create an inclusive and diverse culture
• Listen to other people and the surrounding environment to spark great ideas
• Communicate simply, clearly, and leave a meaningful, memorable, and positive impression on all those around you