Shadowing Practice: DO WHAT YOU CAN'T - Learn English Speaking with Video
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52 sentences
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1
To the haters, the doubters, my seventh grade vice principal, to everyone who's ever told anyone with a dream they can't,
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this video's for you.
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Keep your head down, follow the rules, do as you're told, play it safe, wait your turn, Ask permission.
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Learn to compromise.
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This is terrible advice.
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If I were to write an autobiography, a book about my life, one title that would work would be Do What You Can't,
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because that idea encapsulates everything I've ever done.
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Like when I wanted to move to New York City and my dad was like, you can't, you don't have any money.
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Or when I first said I wanted to make movies and it was, you can't, you didn't go to film school.
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I want to have a TV show?
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No, you can't Casey, you're not pretty enough.
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And to go even further, if I were to characterize what this new generation of content creators and filmmakers,
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what we all do on YouTube and everywhere else is we do what we can't.
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You can't be an action movie filmmaker.
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But you get your parkour friends to dress up like video game characters, jump off some buildings, and you can.
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Right, Devon?
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Yes.
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You can't have a talk show, but you have a webcam and you can.
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What's up, you beautiful bastards?
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What?
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This is my first YouTube video ever.
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Next thing you know, you're interviewing the president.
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I heard that you're going to be out of a job soon.
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Maybe I'll start a YouTube show or something like that.
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That's what I'm thinking.
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You can't fly around
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New York City on a magic carpet, but get your electric skateboard, some PVC pipe, a great outfit, give Jessie a call, and you can.
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What do you think?
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This is so dope.
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You don't need gear, you don't need trucks or a crane, you don't need some big expensive camera rig that never works.
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When you're a creator, you don't need someone in your ear telling you what you can and can't do.
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I'm racing the subway!
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What you can and can't say.
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I accidentally did the shocker, oh my god.
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They call us gamers, influencers, internet famous.
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What the fuck does that mean?
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But we know something they don't.
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You can start a vlog or a makeup channel.
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We'll travel around the world with a gigantic piano playing in beautiful places for interested people.
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When you're a creator, all you need is your phone, an internet connection, and a good idea.
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A story you want to share, something you need to say.
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Confidence is within yourself.
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And then the rest is history.
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If you do it right, you get to quit the day job.
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Make friends from places you've never been.
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Meetups, collaborations, a life moving so fast and so full you won't even have time to process it.
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So to my fellow creators, I say keep creating, keep doing the work.
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And never forget, you don't have to listen to anyone because in this new world no one knows anything.
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Hi haters!
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The haters, the doubters are all drinking champagne in the top deck of the Titanic and we are the fucking icebergs!
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Goin' ahead! Do what you can't.
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Thank you.
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Vocabulary and speaking notes for this lesson
This speaking lesson is built on the video “DO WHAT YOU CAN'T”. The speaker keeps coming back to these words: creator, haters, Youtube. This video has 52 sentences and 543 words to shadow. The speech runs for 3:44. The speaker talks at a steady 145 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
15 words from the video worth learning, with pronunciation and meaning:
| Word | Pronunciation | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| creator noun | /kɹiːˈeɪ̯təː/ | Something or someone which creates or makes something. |
| filmmaker noun | A producer or director of films/movies. | |
| gear noun | /ɡɪɚ/ | Equipment or paraphernalia, especially that used for an athletic endeavor. |
| deck noun | /ˈdɛk/ | Any raised flat surface that can be walked on: a balcony; a porch; a raised patio; a flat rooftop. |
| piano noun | /piˈænɪː/ | A percussive keyboard musical instrument, usually ranging over seven octaves, with white and black colored keys, played by pressing these keys, causing hammers… |
| collaboration noun | /kəˌlæbəˈɹeɪʃən/ | The act of collaborating. |
| pipe noun | /ˈpaɪp/ | A wind instrument consisting of a tube, often lined with holes to allow for adjustment in pitch, sounded by blowing into the tube. |
| seventh adjective | /ˈsɛvənθ/ | The ordinal form of the number seven. |
| accidentally adverb | /ˌæk.sɪˈdɛnt(ə)li/ | In an accidental manner; by chance, unexpectedly. |
| outfit noun | /ˈaʊtfɪt/ | A set of clothing (with accessories). |
| carpet noun | /ˈkɑɹ.pət/ | A fabric used as a complete floor covering. |
| compromise noun | /ˈkɑmpɹəˌmaɪz/ | The settlement of differences by arbitration or by consent reached by mutual concessions. |
| subway noun | /ˈsʌbˌweɪ/ | An underground railway, especially for mass transit of people in urban areas. |
| crane noun | /kɹeɪn/ | Any bird of the family Gruidae, large birds with long legs and a long neck which is extended during flight. |
| champagne noun | /ʃæmˈpeɪn/ | A sparkling white wine made from a blend of grapes, especially Chardonnay and pinot, produced in Champagne, France, by the méthode champenoise. |
Phrasal verbs you will hear
| Word | Meaning |
|---|---|
| dress up verb | To put on special or fancy clothes. |
| jump off verb | To move from an elevated place by one jump. |
Sentences worth repeating
Short, complete lines from the video that you can reuse in everyday conversation:
- You can't be an action movie filmmaker.
- Next thing you know, you're interviewing the president.
- What do you think?
- What you can and can't say.
- Make friends from places you've never been.
Pronunciation to watch
The speaker uses 33 contractions and reduced forms, such as can't, don't, you're. Say them the short way, as you hear them.
- The “sh” and “zh” sounds: collaboration /kəˌlæbəˈɹeɪʃən/, champagne /ʃæmˈpeɪn/, shocker /ˈʃɑkɚ/
- Long words — get the stress right: collaboration /kəˌlæbəˈɹeɪʃən/, accidentally /ˌæk.sɪˈdɛnt(ə)li/, autobiography /ˌɔː.tə.baɪˈɒɡ.ɹə.fi/, characterize /ˈkɛɹəktəɹaɪz/, encapsulate /ɪnˈkæps(j)ʊˌleɪt/
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 creator, filmmaker, gear.
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.