India, Feb. 8 -- The fear of public speaking is an established fear, right up there in the top 10 list. Centuries of attempts by humankind to deliver discourses that impact the audience in the desired way have usually not succeeded, to put it mildly. Some people start off by being nervous wrecks while some speakers take to the stage like the proverbial ducks to water. I have seen many a speaker up close, who has had to overcome years of trepidation and anxiety. Not an easy task, to be able to espouse a cause eloquently before an audience. The size of the gathering also matters to most speakers. While they're comfortable speaking before a score of people, they start sweating when the numbers are in their hundreds. But this is quite a natural human trait. Those undergoing such public speaking-related stress should not consider themselves to be the first ever to feel so! Hilarious situations arise on stage, as well. The wrong names are mentioned, out of context paragraphs are read out, and some speakers even take up totally different topics from those expected. Such gaffes are not limited to the inexperienced, nervous types though. Many a hardened pro has poured water, quite literally, on the hard-earned efforts of the organisers. He is either habitually late or is too full of himself for their liking. The audience often becomes testy while sitting in wait for such an impossible one to arrive. And by the time the said worthy speaker does land up, half of them have left, but not before partaking of some coffee and cake. Such delicacies are usually available in the foyer at such dos, you see. In one particular case the speaker was almost on time and the session began without any inordinate delay. The chaos began thereafter. The audience was so disappointed with the content of his speech, politically tinged as it was, that they began hooting him. And the hooting reached such raucous levels that the situation became rather unhinged. No amount of cajoling by the beloved host from the stage could prevent the angered lot from becoming unruly very soon. Expletives were hurled, chairs were flung, tomatoes were thrown and paper planes were launched in the general direction of the said wayward speaker. Our man proved rather sturdy and difficult to dislodge though. He went on, undaunted, with his tirade, which predictably turned progressively worse in tone, tenor and quality. The result was that a portly inspector of police turned up from nowhere and whisked him away before the man was thrashed to pulp. Not all speech-related events are as ludicrous though. Some are somnambulant affairs. The speakers are so dull and uninspiring that snores are likely to be heard from the second row before long. And when polite taps by concerned neighbours don't work, the ushers have to perforce step in. No usher worth his salt enjoys the annoyed glare of a senior speaker whose supposedly brilliant speech has been interrupted by loud snores. It is another matter that someone in the fourth row starts snoring even more loudly, shortly thereafter. My own experience as a speaker has been a mixed bag. I must non-humbly declare that I have seldom induced any sense of sleepiness in my listeners. But there have been times when I have been unable to strike the perfect chord with them. At other times, they have been gushing, and I have been left blushing. A young wannabe speaker or even a career veteran who now seeks to speak at a TEDx sort of platform, would do well to practice endlessly. Public speaking is hard work. Each anecdote, nuance thereof, and each emphasis worthy point, is worth going over, again and again. I often tell my public speaking students to practice often before their siblings or close friends. And to keep some chocolates handy later! Empathy for the group that one is addressing is another important factor to keep in mind. There is no point in waxing eloquent about one's boring achievements. An audience must get its money's worth, or at least it's time's worth. And a speaker must know when to stop. So should a writer!...