Shadowing Practice: #105 Celebrating small wins at work | SBS Learn English - Learn English Speaking with Video
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Look, learning English helps me feel strong in professional situations.
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SPS acknowledges the traditional custodians of country and their connections and continuous care for the skies, land and waterways throughout Australia.
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My work days can feel the same every day.
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Emails, meetings, deadlines.
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And sometimes one task, even if it's very small, can feel very hard.
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You put it off, think about it all day, and then it just stays on your to-do list.
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A to-do list is a list of jobs that you have to do.
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Do you make those for yourself?
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For me, it's not a task itself that is difficult.
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It's just getting started on it.
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Hi, I'm Josipa and in this episode we are talking about small wins at work.
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Those tiny achievements that help us feel good and stay motivated.
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So let's imagine a short break at work, coffee in hand, Alan and Claire are chatting about the little wins they had today.
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I finally sent that email I've been putting off.
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Give yourself a pat on the back.
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I know that was a tough one.
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I know, right?
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I even treated myself to chocolate.
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Good on you.
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Now use that small win to build some momentum.
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Small wins at work might not seem like a big deal, but for me, they can make a huge difference.
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How about you?
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Do you celebrate small wins?
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While you think about your last small win, let's look more closely at the phrases we just heard.
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Alan first said, I finally sent that email I've been putting off.
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To put something off means to delay doing it, often because it feels difficult or uncomfortable.
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It's a very common phrase in everyday English, especially when talking about work.
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For example, you could say, I've been putting off that report all week.
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Or, I keep putting off calling the client.
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I keep putting off cleaning those shelves.
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Next, Claire said...
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Give yourself a pat on the back.
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To give yourself a pat on the back means to feel proud about something you've done.
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It is like you praise yourself.
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It's often used when someone has achieved something, even something small.
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You might also hear, You should be proud of yourself.
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Or, more casually, Nice work!
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Then Alan said, I even treated myself to chocolate.
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To treat yourself means to give yourself a small reward.
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It could be chocolate, a coffee, a break, or anything you enjoy.
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For example, I treated myself to a nice lunch.
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Or I'll treat myself after I finish this task.
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Next, Claire said...
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Now use that small win to build some momentum.
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Momentum is energy and movement so that things progress.
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When you build momentum, one small success helps you move on to the next task and so you keep going.
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You could also say...
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Keep the ball rolling with that win.
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The phrase, keep the ball rolling, comes from sport.
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When you roll a ball, it keeps moving.
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In English, we use it to mean keep going or don't stop.
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Keep the ball rolling.
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For example, I finally got through my emails.
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Now I can keep the ball rolling and finish my report.
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Finally, Alan said...
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One step at a time.
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I'm slowly getting there.
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One step at a time is a very common phrase in English.
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It means focusing on small actions instead of trying to do everything at once.
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It's often used to talk about habits, work goals or personal progress.
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And of course, you're not getting to any particular destination when you say, I'm taking one step at a time.
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But you are making progress in whatever you are doing.
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You could also say, I'm getting there, slowly but surely.
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Or, I'm making steady progress.
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If you are making steady progress, you are slowly improving or getting better, one step at a time.
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Now, let's run through that dialogue one more time, and then my favourite part, our turn to practice out loud.
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Let's go.
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I finally sent that email I've been putting off.
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Give yourself a pat on the back.
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I know that was a tough one.
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I know, right?
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I even treated myself to chocolate.
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Good on you!
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Now use that small wind to build some momentum.
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Now it's time to practice.
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See if you remember the meaning before hearing the answer.
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What does it mean to put something off?
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To put something off means to delay doing something, often because it feels difficult or uncomfortable.
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What does it mean to treat yourself?
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To treat yourself means to give yourself a small reward.
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It could be chocolate, a coffee, a break, or anything you enjoy.
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Now let's practice our pronunciation skills by repeating after Alan and Claire.
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You should be proud of yourself.
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Give yourself a pat on the back.
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I treated myself to chocolate.
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Keep the ball rolling with that win.
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To practice your speaking skills more, check out our bonus episode.
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You'll also find learning notes and lots of useful phrases at sbs.com.au slash learn English.
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And don't forget, we are on Facebook, Instagram, and YouTube.
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Just search for SBS Learn English.
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I'm Josipa, and thanks for learning English with me today.
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Vocabulary and speaking notes for this lesson
This B1 speaking lesson is built on the video “Celebrating small wins at work”. The speaker keeps coming back to these words: English, chocolate, putting, ball, momentum. This video has 91 sentences and 868 words to shadow. The speech runs for 7:11. The speaker talks at a steady 121 words per minute, a comfortable pace for shadowing. 85% of the words are among the 3,000 most common in English; the rest is worth studying before you start.
Key vocabulary in this video
The 15 most advanced words in the video, with pronunciation and meaning:
| Word | Pronunciation | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| momentum noun | /ˌmə(ʊ)ˈmɛntəm/ | Of a body in motion: the tendency of a body to maintain its inertial motion; the product of its mass and velocity, or the vector sum of the products of its… |
| phrase noun | /ˈfɹeɪ̯z/ | A short written or spoken expression. |
| uncomfortable adjective | /ʌnˈkʌm.fɚ.tə.bl̩/ | Not comfortable; causing discomfort. |
| steady adjective | /ˈstɪdi/ | Firm in standing or position; not tottering or shaking; fixed; firm. |
| reward noun | /ɹɪˈwɔɹd/ | Something of value given in return for an act. |
| custodian noun | /kəˈstoʊdiən/ | A person entrusted with the custody or care of something or someone; a caretaker or keeper. |
| waterway noun | /ˈwɔːtəweɪ/ | A body of water, such as a river, channel or canal, that is navigable. |
| pronunciation noun | /pɹəˌnʌn.siˈeɪ.ʃən/ | The formal or informal way in which a word is made to sound when spoken. |
| motivate verb | /ˈmoʊ.tɪ.veɪt/ | To provide someone with an incentive to do something; to encourage; to actuate. |
| casually adverb | /ˈkæʒuəli/ | In a casual manner. |
| shelf noun | /ʃɛlf/ | A flat, rigid structure, fixed at right angles to a wall or forming a part of a cabinet, desk, etc., and used to display, store, or support objects. |
| deadline noun | /ˈdɛdˌlaɪn/ | A time limit in the form of a date on or before which something must be completed. |
| acknowledge verb | /əkˈnɑ.lɪd͡ʒ/ | To admit the knowledge of; to recognize as a fact or truth; to declare one's belief in. |
| continuous adjective | /kənˈtɪn.juː.əs/ | Without stopping; without a break, cessation, or interruption. |
| habit noun | /ˈhæb.ɪt/ | An action performed on a regular basis. |
Phrasal verbs you will hear
| Word | Pronunciation | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| put off verb | To postpone, especially through procrastination. | |
| check out verb | To record the departure or withdrawal of someone or something (such as guests, employees, books, etc.). | |
| get through verb | /ɡɛt ˈθɹu/ | To overcome; to endure. |
| run through verb | To summarise briefly. |
Sentences worth repeating
Short, complete lines from the video that you can reuse in everyday conversation:
- Do you make those for yourself?
- I finally sent that email I've been putting off.
- Do you celebrate small wins?
Grammar in this video
The structures the speaker uses most, with the exact words from the video:
| Structure | In the video |
|---|---|
| Present perfect continuous have/has been + -ing — an action that started earlier and is still going on | I've been putting |
| Present perfect have/has + past participle — a past action that still matters now | you've done · has achieved |
| Verb + -ing enjoy, keep, stop… + -ing — verbs that are followed by the -ing form | keep putting · keeps moving |
| Advice with “should” should + verb — saying what is a good idea | should be |
Pronunciation to watch
The speaker uses 16 contractions and reduced forms, such as I'm, I've, don't. Say them the short way, as you hear them.
- The “sh” and “zh” sounds: pronunciation /pɹəˌnʌn.siˈeɪ.ʃən/, casually /ˈkæʒuəli/, shelf /ʃɛlf/, destination /dɛstɪˈneɪʃən/
- Long words — get the stress right: momentum /ˌmə(ʊ)ˈmɛntəm/, uncomfortable /ʌnˈkʌm.fɚ.tə.bl̩/, pronunciation /pɹəˌnʌn.siˈeɪ.ʃən/, continuous /kənˈtɪn.juː.əs/, destination /dɛstɪˈneɪʃən/
How to practise with this video
- Listen to the whole video once without speaking and note the words you do not know.
- Shadow it sentence by sentence at normal speed, repeating each one until your rhythm matches the speaker.
- Record yourself and compare with the original, paying attention to words like momentum, phrase, uncomfortable.
What is the Shadowing Technique?
Shadowing is a science-backed language learning technique originally developed for professional interpreter training and popularized by polyglot Dr. Alexander Arguelles. The method is simple but powerful: you listen to native English audio and immediately repeat it out loud — like a shadow following the speaker with just a 1–2 second delay. Unlike passive listening or grammar drills, shadowing forces your brain and mouth muscles to simultaneously process and reproduce real speech patterns. Research shows it significantly improves pronunciation accuracy, intonation, rhythm, connected speech, listening comprehension, and speaking fluency — making it one of the most effective methods for IELTS Speaking preparation and real-world English communication.