Shadowing Practice: 3 Steps To Improve Your Speech Clarity - Learn English Speaking with Video
Creating lesson...
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I'm going to share with you a simple three-step framework
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that trains you to stop saying um and ah every single time you speak.
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Those are what I call the non-words.
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They're the sounds that you make to fill the silence.
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And then there are the filler words.
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They're the words you use to fill the silence.
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Like, so, and, do you know what I mean?
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I've been coaching communication skills to Fortune 500 companies and millions of people.
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And the biggest problem I see is highly qualified professionals littering their speech with non-words and filler words.
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It's auditory clutter that adds no value to their communication.
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As a result, when they speak, they come across unclear and hard to follow.
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And even worse, people judge them as less credible than they actually are.
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And I don't want you to fall into this trap either.
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So please, if there's one thing you're going to commit to today, learn this process I'm about to go through.
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Because it's the difference between being ignored and being taken seriously.
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The first step in you doing this is you need to engage in awareness, first of all.
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and what I mean by awareness as being the first step
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is well what are your filler words what are your non-words really start to be conscious of this
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and the way you can do this is you just need to record a video of yourself
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and this video is going to be a little bit longer
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because I want you to record a 10 minute video of
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yourself answering the question what are the three reasons why you want to improve your communication skills make sure
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when you're recording this video it's an impromptu take meaning you haven't scripted
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or rehearsed anything
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and make sure you don't stop the recording until the 10
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minutes is over you want to tease out the non-words and filler words
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I know you'll feel the urge to stop the recording when you stuff up, but this is an important part of awareness.
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Now, when you're reviewing that video, get it transcribed.
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And once you've got it transcribed, look through the transcript.
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Use a red highlighter and highlight all of your non-words and all of your filler words.
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What are the sounds I make when I'm unsure?
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What are the words I use when I'm uncomfortable with a pause?
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You need to become fully aware of what your non-words and filler words are.
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First step is awareness.
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Second step is deliberate practice.
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It means that you need to dedicate time.
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And I would encourage you to do this with a partner.
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Do this with someone who can help you in the process.
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I want you to find someone, this is step two, who you can deliberately practice with and you say to your partner, hold a bell if you don't have a bell,
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have a horn, but if you don't have a horn, these are just the ways that I learned.
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What my mentor would do with me is he sat there with an air horn and he goes, Vin, I want you to speak for the next 10 minutes.
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And every non-word, every filler word that you're going to use, I'm going to press the air horn.
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And it was very uncomfortable because it was so loud.
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And he would literally sit there and he goes, Vin, I'd like you to speak.
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I'd like you to answer this question for me that you would most likely encounter at work.
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And then Vin, you've got to speak for 10 minutes, okay?
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You ready?
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Go.
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And literally as I'm speaking, because I've done the awareness step and I'm aware of what my non-words and filler words are, I gave him that list.
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And every single time I hit one of those non-words and fillers, boop, boop.
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And it was so excruciating that I would slightly flinch.
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But that deliberate, and you don't have to use an air horn, that's just rather dramatic, but I love that.
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I love the dramatic nature of that.
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It just really anchors the lesson.
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But you could also get a friend to clap.
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So every time you say an um, they clap.
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And they're waiting every time you pause and you say something strange or you make a sound.
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And it's slightly a little bit of negative reinforcement, but it helps you get rid of the unwanted behavior because it makes you, now that you're aware, Now you're super conscious of it,
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which is really important, right?
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And there's a little step here too that you can take.
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And this is a part of deliberate practice.
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There's another form of deliberate practice.
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And the other form of deliberate practice is to overdo it.
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Once you become aware of your non-words and your filler words, overdo it.
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Do a deliberate practice session where you litter what you're about to say as you're practicing with ums and ahs.
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So an example of that is you go, all right, so I say the word like a lot.
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I say the word okay a lot.
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Do you know what I mean a lot? and then I also say amana a lot.
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Okay, so now here I'll do it, I'll practise.
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You know, like I want to like, you know, improve my communication skills,
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you know, basically because so like, and you overdo it.
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This is a really funny way to practice
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because it really brings to the forefront of your mind the words that are causing the issue.
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So instead of just being aware, you're actually acting out the awareness.
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So it's a wonderful way to practice as well.
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And then after you've done that, you've got it out of your system, then go into the deliberate practice, the version of the deliberate practice,
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where you are getting a negative reinforcement every time you're doing it.
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So that's a wonderful way to be doing it.
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Okay, so it's a wonderful way to actually practice.
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If you're finding this helpful and you wanna learn communication skills more formally with me, I wanna do something for you that I've never done before.
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For a limited time, you can enroll in my flagship online program, the Stage Academy for 499 USD.
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I've distilled the 80-20 of everything you need to know when it comes to being a better communicator and public speaker.
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That's where you go to learn and you also get six months access to my stage community.
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That's where you go to apply alongside hundreds of people working on the exact same skill.
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We do monthly communication challenges that pushes you to practice your new skills
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and you'll get access to a live monthly Q&A with me
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and you'll also get access to our full library of past recordings, which includes exclusive sessions with other communication experts, including me.
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This month, we've got a comedian, Andrew Tarvin, coming into our community, doing a live Q&A on how to become more humorous.
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And yes, we all can actually learn to be more funny.
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We only take in a small group each month to keep the community focused, active, and full of people who are serious about practicing this skill together.
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So if you're ready to level up your communication, click on the link in the description to join us.
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And then the third thing you do, number three, is now you bring it into your life.
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you bring the practice into your life.
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So now in your everyday conversations, you just don't have the friend who's standing there clapping at you,
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but you're doing everything you can in every single conversation to absolutely minimize the amount of non-words and fillers that you use.
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It's why I hope you notice that every time I speak and every time I'm teaching, there's very little non-words and fillers.
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Very few.
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And when you listen to me in that way, the information that I'm delivering,
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there are no obstacles for the message the message is crisp it's clear and it's clean
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that way it's easier for you to comprehend otherwise if I've got
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so many ums and ahs and filler words and non-words
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and I start to litter my communication with it you just experienced before it will be
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so hard for me to deliver anything do you know what I mean like um
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if I I just was talking about awareness and then I was talking about deliberate practice and I go to...
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Do you see what that does?
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It creates so much difficulty for you.
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You have to work so hard now to follow what I'm saying.
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Whereas if you could just remove the ums and the ahs through this simple three-step process, what that does is it makes you so easy to listen to.
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And that's a huge part of engagement.
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Why do I keep speaking to engagement?
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Why am I speaking about the importance of engagement when it comes to influence?
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Well, it's because if you want to be more influential, my goodness, first be really easy to understand.
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Otherwise, people have to use so much of their cognitive capacity to even just listen to you.
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Whereas when you make listening to you easier, influence becomes so much simpler.
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It becomes a lighter lift because people want to keep listening to you talk.
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There's a desire to keep listening because of the ease at which it is, because of the ease that comes with listening to you.
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There's a pleasure to it because so many people are not good at this.
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So you've got that three-step process there.
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I hope that does help you on your journey of practicing minimizing non-words and filler words.
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Why This Video Is a Goldmine for Clear Speaking
Ever noticed how filler words like "um" or "like" can make even the smartest ideas sound messy? The video dives into a relatable problem—cluttered speech—and offers a step-by-step fix, making it perfect for English learners. It’s not just about avoiding mistakes; it’s about rebuilding how you communicate, which aligns with the shadowing technique’s focus on intentional practice. Whether you’re using a shadowing app or practicing with a partner, the framework here gives you concrete goals to work toward.
Breaking Down the Key Ideas
Let’s unpack a few standout moments. The speaker says, "They’re the sounds that you make to fill the silence"—simple, direct, and full of natural rhythm. Notice how "fill the silence" paints a clear picture, avoiding jargon. Another line: "It’s auditory clutter that adds no value" uses a metaphor ("clutter") to make a complex idea easy to grasp. This is how native speakers connect with listeners—through vivid, concise language. Even the instruction "record a 10-minute video of yourself answering a question" is actionable, which is crucial for shadow speak practice, where specificity drives progress.
A Practice Routine to Try Today
Ready to turn these ideas into habits? Start with the "awareness" step from the video: record yourself talking for 10 minutes about why you want to improve your English. Then, transcribe it (a shadowing app can help with this!) and highlight fillers. Next, try the "deliberate practice" loop: pair up with a partner or use a shadowing app that flags mistakes. Every time you say "um" or "so," pause, repeat the sentence, and try again. This mimics the "bell" technique from the video—discomfort leads to growth. Over time, you’ll notice fewer fillers and more confidence. Remember, shadow speech isn’t just about copying; it’s about reprogramming your brain to speak clearly, one intentional sentence at a time.
Grammar in this video
The structures the speaker uses most, with the exact words from the video:
| Structure | In the video |
|---|---|
| Present perfect have/has + past participle — a past action that still matters now | haven't scripted · I've done · you've done |
| Relative clauses who / which + clause — extra information about a person or thing | someone who can · people who are |
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.