Frequently Asked Questions

01 I understand that Paul teaches the SAT/ACT exam too. Is that right?

Paul and his wife, Kelly, own a private SAT tutoring service called Briarcliff Hall. They have taught the exam to college-bound students for the past 30 years. Paul teaches the Math portion of the exam and Kelly teaches the Verbal portion. Here is their website: briarcliffhall.com

02 Are there exercises to practice at home to help with nurturing the right side of the brain?

At the end of the interactive speech, we will provide an internal business link of some of the exercises that were done during the speech (and their cognitive benefit) along with step-by-step instructions so they can be practiced at home. In addition, you only need one other person in order to practice effectively and nurture the right side of the brain. In fact, some of the business improv exercises Paul has designed can even be done alone.

03 Are there companies that have used Beta Test improv services more than once?

Dozens of companies have hired Beta test improv numerous times including Ingersoll Rand, Wells Fargo, Duke University, Gulfstream Aerospace, Nutramax, Duke University, Red Ventures, and many others.

04 How can I justify your humorous speech to my boss?

Humor might be thought of as a soft skill but it can have a huge bottom-line result. As Paul points out in his speech, the top 100 companies to work for in America have a vastly superior stock market return than other companies on the exchange and one of the main contributors to that statistic is the fun factor at work.

In addition, companies that add humor into the workplace increase morale, have a lower voluntary turnover, and often increase productivity at an exponential rate. As Ben and Jerry's said, "The bottom line is not that far from the punchline."

05 Our company is made up of serious accountants and executives who feel like Beta Test improv might put them on the spot to have to be funny?

Paul's speech is designed to nurture the right side of the brain to help people come out of their comfort zone in a playful way that doesn't put people on the spot to be funny.

The business improv exercises have been researched and used hundreds of times to help people gain confidence in themselves and realize that becoming comfortable with the uncomfortable is a major key to a successful career.

06 No offense, but some people think right brain thinkers can be flighty or off in la-la land. Do you see my point?

We do see the point although painting right brain thinkers with a broad brush isn't always true, there is some validity in what you are saying. We think it's important to have a balance between creativity and analytical thinking.

07 Why is your company called Beta Test improv?

Because as humans, none of us are completely “done”. We’re going to make mistakes. We're a work in progress.

But with Beta Test improv training all of us can identify our personal “bugs” and learn to improve quick-thinking skills, empathy, active listening, diversity, and humor. And eventually, be re-released into the general population!