As a manager you can't get away from the fact that sometimes you have to speak in public. The fear of public speaking is a very real concern for some managers when they're asked to give a demonstration in front of people they have never met or in front of a large crowd. Sometimes it's even hard to conduct a sales meeting as all eyes are upon you watching everything you do. Unfortunately, speaking in public is a part of a managers life depending on where you work. But, it need not be something that makes you break out in a nervous sweat every time someone mentions they'd like you to give a demonstration in front of a few people.

You may firstly ask, what makes me someone who can give public speaking tips? Fair enough. Fairly early in life at high school level, I was involved in a lot of stage productions and usually I had a leading role. I had a religious upbringing and part of that was being trained in the art of public speaking. I did a lot of presentations, five minute discourses as well as twenty to thirty minute presentations in front of about 150 people, pretty much on a weekly basis. Fresh out of high school, I joined a band and we played a lot of weddings, receptions and parties where I learned the use of a microphone and how not to be afraid of it but to use it to my advantage.

From there I went into various management positions where I had to conduct hundreds of sales meetings, demonstrations of new products to clients and some product launches. The biggest audience I ever had was of about 14,000 people at a conference. Was I nervous every time I had to do these things? Of course. Sometimes terrified. But as part of the art of public speaking, I was always prepared. Here are a few tips for you to help with your next public speaking engagement:

1. The most important thing you have to remember is, always do your homework. You need to understand what the topic is, what's important to you about the topic and more importantly, whats important to the audience. The art of public speaking is: preparation, preparation, and more preparation. The fear of public speaking isn't so much from getting in front of a group of people as much as being afraid of something going wrong. It's usually an imagined fear. By being prepared, you can minimize that.

2. Forget the old technique you may have heard about imagining your audience naked. That never worked for me. The whole idea of that technique is to think of your audience as normal, everyday people. When a CEO isn't wearing a suit, he's just like you and me. Sure, he may have a higher position than you, but in the end, he's just a man, no one really to be intimidated by when you are up there on the podium. He probably gets just as nervous as you when he speaks in public.

3. Control your breathing. When you are up there, talk slowly, clearly and deliberately. Don't rush as you will only slur your words and speak so fast that your audience are going to get lost and you will be able to see their reaction which will only make you paranoid thinking you are a complete failure. One feeds on the other.

4. Be careful with humor. Jokes and funny stories in a presentation are great but part of the art of public speaking is making sure they are appropriate for your audience. Prepare them in advance and if you are not sure about something, ask for someone's opinion. Always make sure that all your stories and jokes are relevant.

5. There is nothing more boring than sitting in an audience listening to a speaker as monotone and impersonal as a computer generated voice. Believe me, I have literally fallen asleep on a lot of public speakers from the drone of their voice. Try and add highs and lows in your voice, pauses where relevant to let the point sink in and above all else, act enthusiastic about your topic even if you are not!

6. Preparation is basically the key to the art of public speaking. You will probably always get nervous before you 'go on'. All good public speakers do. If you are not nervous beforehand, then you are either a very confident person or you are too cocky. The way to control nerves is take a few deep breaths before you go on, and always in the back of your mind remind yourself to speak slowly, clearly and very very precisely. Once you are comfortable in speaking in front of people, all those things will become automatic and you will be able to be yourself up there.

The more you speak in front of people, the better you will become at it. Try and control your nerves, be prepared, and make sure that whatever jokes or stories you have are relevant to the topic. Master the art of public speaking and soon you will have the audience eating out of your hand.