Shadowing Practice: 6 Powerful Life Lessons from Taylor Swift | NYU Commencement Speech 2022 Highlights - Learn English Speaking with YouTube

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I have some good news.
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I have some good news.
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It's totally up to you.
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I have some terrifying news.
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It's totally up to you.
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Life can be heavy, especially if you try to carry it all at once.
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Part of growing up and moving into new chapters of your life is about catch and release.
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What I mean by that is knowing what things to keep and what things to release.
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You can't carry all things.
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All grudges, all updates on your ex,
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all enviable promotions your school bully got at the hedge fund his uncle started.
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Decide what is yours to hold and let the rest go.
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Oftentimes the good things in your life are lighter anyway.
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You get to pick what your life has time and room for.
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Secondly, Learn to live alongside cringe.
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No matter how hard you try to avoid being cringe,
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you will look back on your life and cringe retrospectively respectively.
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Cringe is unavoidable over a lifetime.
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Even the term cringe might someday be deemed cringe.
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I promise you, you're probably doing or wearing something right now
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that you will look back on later and find revolting and hilarious.
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You can't avoid it, so don't try to.
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I'd like to say I'm a big advocate for not hiding your enthusiasm for things.
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Here, so you have to listen to me when I say this.
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Never be ashamed of trying.
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Effortlessness is a myth.
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The people who wanted it the least were the ones I wanted to date and be friends with in high school.
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The people who want it the most are the people I now hire to work for my company.
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me.
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Everything I do is just an extension of my writing,
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whether it's directing videos or a short film,
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creating the visuals for a tour,
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or standing on a stage performing.
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Everything is connected by my love of the craft.
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The thrill of working through ideas and narrowing them down and polishing it all up in the end,
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editing, waking up in the middle of the night,
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throwing out the old idea because you just thought of a new
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or better one or a plot device that ties the whole thing together.
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But in a way, I really do think we are all writers.
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And most of us write in a different voice for different situations.
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You write differently in your Instagram stories than you do your senior thesis.
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You send a different type of email to your boss than you do your best friend from home.
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We are all literary chameleons,
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and I think it's fascinating.
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It's just a continuation of the idea that we are so many things all the time.
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And I know it can be really overwhelming figuring out who to be and when.
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who you are now and how to act in order to get where you want to go.
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My experience has been that my mistakes led to the best things in my life.
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Not being invited to the parties and sleepovers in my hometown made me feel hopelessly lonely.
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But because I felt alone,
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I would sit in my room and write the songs that would get me a ticket somewhere else.
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Getting cancelled on the internet and nearly losing my career gave me an excellent knowledge of all the types of wine.
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And I'm not going to lie.
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These mistakes will cause you to lose things.
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I'm trying to tell you that losing things doesn't just mean losing.
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A lot of the time when we lose things, we gain things too.
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Not a single one of us here today has done it alone.
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We are each a patchwork quilt of those who have loved us,
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those who have believed in our futures,
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Those who showed us empathy and kindness,
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or told us the truth even when it wasn't easy to hear.
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Those who told us we could do it when there was absolutely no proof of that.
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Someone read stories to you and taught you to dream.
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Maybe they aren't with us anymore.
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In that case, I hope you'll remember them today.
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If they are in this stadium,
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I hope you'll find your own way
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to express your gratitude for all the steps and missteps that have led us to this common destination.
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As for me, I'm 90% sure the main reason I'm here is because I have a song called 22.
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The scary news is, you're on your own now.
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The cool news is, you're on your own now.

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About This Lesson

In this lesson, you will practice your English speaking skills using the powerful life lessons shared by Taylor Swift during her NYU Commencement Speech. The focus will be on understanding and internalizing the themes of letting go, embracing cringe, and the importance of effort. By engaging with the transcript, you'll not only enhance your vocabulary but also develop a deeper understanding of how to communicate these concepts effectively. This exercise is particularly useful if you are preparing for the IELTS speaking practice, as it combines emotional content with practical language use.

Key Vocabulary & Phrases

  • Catch and release: The act of deciding what to keep in your life and what to let go of.
  • Live alongside cringe: The acceptance that uncomfortable or embarrassing moments are part of life.
  • Effortlessness is a myth: The idea that success requires hard work and effort.
  • Literary chameleons: Individuals who adapt their writing style based on their audience or situation.
  • Embrace your enthusiasm: Encouragement to show genuine passion for your interests.
  • Overwhelming: A feeling of being mentally or emotionally exhausted due to various pressures.
  • Lonely: The state of feeling isolated or without companionship.

Practice Tips

To make the most of your shadowing experience with this video, consider using a shadowing app or a dedicated shadowing site. Start by listening to a small section of the speech, focusing on Taylor's tone, pace, and inflection. Her speech exudes authenticity and reflection, which you should aim to capture in your practice. Speak along with her, mimicking her emotions and style. If a section feels too fast, slow it down and practice until you feel comfortable before returning to the normal speed. This form of shadow speech will help you align your pronunciation and rhythm with natural spoken English.

Additionally, try repeating key phrases aloud several times to familiarize yourself with their usage. This will not only enhance your vocabulary but also prepare you to discuss similar themes in your own words, which is beneficial for your IELTS speaking practice. Remember, the goal is to internalize the message while improving your fluency and confidence in spoken English.

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.

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