Joel, outgoing, good-humored and forthright, made himself an expert and master teacher of the art of making an oral presentation to the public.

Such advice is not always accepted, so Joel preached, “Don’t speak to me, just talk to me. An audience is nothing more than a bunch of individuals. The only reason you’re talking to them as a group is because it’s more convenient – so just talk to them as though you are talking to one person.” Email handle: “joelspeaks@.”

His enterprise was a highly practical one-man business called Effective Presentations. Joel estimated that in 36 years he taught presentation skills and public speaking in workshops for more than 25,000 individuals in 39 countries. His DVDs are available on Amazon, and you can see him in action on YouTube.

A longtime resident of Buffalo Grove, Joel died Dec. 9, 2020. He leaves his wife, Susan, children Jodi (Dan) Rubenstein and Blake (Lisa) Hochberger; grandson Leo Rubenstein and two more grandsons on the way; and sister Merle April. As his newspaper memorial said, “Joel had many friends, loved meeting new people and making them all his friends. He enjoyed giving a good speech, watching a good game, doing a new card trick, and having a great meal, but family always came first.” The family suggested contributions in his name to the American Heart Association and the National Alliance on Mental Health.

Joel attended Bradley and Northwestern and was director of training for 11 years at Leo Burnett, the advertising firm. He was comfortable with training anyone from entry level to CEO. More precisely, he said, “I help executives and sales reps get others to understand and accept their ideas.”

Attendees at his workshops ranged from CEOs (Abbott Labs, Miller Brewing, Eli Lilly, etc.) to recent college graduates interviewing for their first jobs. He coached political candidates and dignitaries including the former premier of Bermuda, the former mayor of Chicago, and the chairman of the Federal Communications Commission. He guest-lectured at universities— Chicago, Illinois, Wisconsin, Michigan, Notre Dame, Northwestern—and was a banquet speaker for organizations such as the American Marketing Association. He wrote for business magazines, was quoted in major newspapers and was a featured guest on WCIU-TV’s “Ask An Expert!” Fox News once called on him to critique the second President Bush's speaking skills.

No matter the forum, Joel never failed to provide sensible, real-world advice. For instance, what’s the proper speaking pace? “Don’t speed up or slow down. Just talk as though there is only one person in the room.”