Shadowing Practice: English Job Interviews - Learn English Speaking with Video
Creating lesson...
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Hi, I'm AJ Hoag of EffortlessEnglishClub .com.
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Let's talk about job interviews, specifically job interviews in English.
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Job interviews are another situation that can cause a lot of stress,
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a lot of nervousness, even in your own language.
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But when you have to do a job interview in English, of course, then it's much scarier and you can feel a lot more nervous.
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I think of job interviews as just a special kind of English presentation.
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Instead of making a speech to a group,
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you're basically giving a presentation about yourself to one or maybe a couple of interviewers.
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It's that same pressure, the same stress, the same need to perform under pressure.
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And therefore, that technique of practicing when you are in an excited state, when you have a lot of adrenaline,
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it's also useful for job interviews.
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So when you practice for a job interview, don't do it when you're just feeling relaxed and calm.
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You know, a lot of people, they have a list of job interview interview questions from some book or something, and they practice giving their answers.
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But they do it and they're just sitting down and kind of, you know, relaxed.
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So they're practicing when they're really just relaxed.
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But then when the job interview comes, of course, the heart beats, they get more and more nervous, more and more nervous.
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And when your name is called, oh my God, then you feel really nervous, right?
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You sit down and you're looking at the person, they start asking you these questions.
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What are your strengths?
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What are your weaknesses?
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Why do you want to work here?
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Why should we hire you?
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All these kind of a little bit direct questions or difficult questions.
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If you don't practice under pressure, then you will not perform well under pressure.
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So your practice needs to be close to the real event.
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So once again, I would like to put on music, get really excited, and get even a little bit of tired physically.
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So I'll, you know, jump up and down until I'm breathing heavy and my heart's beating.
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Then suddenly, I will grab a card and look at an interview question and practice my answer.
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While I'm feeling tired, while I'm breathing heavy, while my heart's beating, while I'm feeling all this excitement and energy in my body, then I give my answer.
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Then I'll do it again, I'll get really excited, and then I grab another question and I practice giving my answer.
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And I repeat this again and again and again and again.
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Again, I practice with my body being very excited and energized, right?
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It's close to feeling nervous.
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And then I start to train my body, instead of feeling nervous, I'm going to feel excited and powerful during a job interview.
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So again, I use rock and roll music, powerful music, and I get myself really excited.
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Yeah, yeah, yeah, whoo.
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Then I grab a question.
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What is your greatest strength?
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And then I look, I practice it.
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Maybe I look in a mirror and I say, my greatest strength is that I am persistent.
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I never stop.
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I never quit.
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When I have a problem, I will keep working on it again and again and again.
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If I can't find the answer, then I go and I ask other people.
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If they can't help me, then I get on the internet.
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I read books.
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I do whatever I need to do to find the solution to the problem.
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Hmmm.
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That's a powerful interview answer.
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See, and I practice it in that powerful state.
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Now, when I'm actually sitting in front of someone, I might not be quite so loud about it.
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It depends on the interviewer.
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If they're really relaxed, then I don't want to overwhelm them and be too strong.
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But I practice in that state because I know during the interview, I may be nervous.
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So I want to practice dealing with all that energy.
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And I also want to give powerful, confident answers.
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You must practice that.
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You must train it.
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Because if you just practice at home, Oh, well, I'm really persistent.
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And you're reading your little answer or you're just saying it.
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I'm really persistent and I don't give up.
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And you're practicing with this kind of emotion.
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Well, then in the job interview, guess what?
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That's the same emotion you'll have.
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Except it'll be worse because in the job interview, you'll be nervous.
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Your heart will be beating faster.
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And so then your voice will start to shake and you'll say,
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I'm really, well, I'm really persistent and I don't give up and I never quit and I never stop, you know, if there's a problem,
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I just find the answer.
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You'll forget a lot of the great stuff you're going to say and most important, your voice tone, your face,
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your body will not look strong, they won't be confident.
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You must practice this.
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So just like with speeches When you're practicing for a job interview, put on some loud music, get yourself excited, then give your answer.
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Say it to the mirror, feeling strong and powerful.
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Just let the English come out.
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Don't worry about grammar and don't worry about mistakes.
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What is much more important than grammar or vocabulary or mistakes is your attitude, your emotion, your feeling, your confidence, your passion.
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That's what the employer wants to see and feel.
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You must practice it, you must train it day after day after day before the interview
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so when the interview comes you are ready and you will do a great job.
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I use this technique many times and it worked great for me getting jobs.
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It will work for you too, but you must practice it every day.
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Practice with that powerful emotion, it works.
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I'm A .J.
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Hogue of EffortlessEnglishClub .com.
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Vocabulary and speaking notes for this lesson
This speaking lesson is built on the video “English Job Interviews”. The speaker keeps coming back to these words: interview, practice, answer, nervous, excited. This video has 85 sentences and 982 words to shadow. The speech runs for 5:51. The speaker talks at a natural 168 words per minute, close to everyday conversation. 84% 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 |
|---|---|---|
| relax verb | /ɹɪˈlæks/ | To make something loose. |
| emotion noun | /ɪˈməʊ.ʃən/ | A person's internal state of being and involuntary physiological response to an object or a situation, based on or tied to physical state and sensory data. |
| persistent adjective | /pəˈsɪstənt/ | Obstinately refusing to give up or let go. |
| mirror noun | /ˈmiɹɚ/ | A smooth surface, usually made of glass with reflective material painted on the underside, that reflects light so as to give an image of what is in front of it. |
| technique noun | /tɛkˈniːk/ | The practical aspects of a given art, occupation etc.; formal requirements. |
| presentation noun | /ˌpɹɛzn̩ˈteɪʃn̩/ | The act of presenting, or something presented. |
| breathe verb | /bɹiːð/ | To draw air into (inhale), and expel air from (exhale), the lungs in order to extract oxygen and excrete waste gases. |
| grammar noun | /ˈɡɹæm.ə(ɹ)/ | A system of rules and principles for the structure of a language, or of languages in general. |
| distress noun | /dɪˈstɹɛs/ | Physical or emotional discomfort, suffering, or alarm, particularly of a more acute nature. |
| interviewer noun | /ˈɪntɚvjuɚ/ | One who interviews. |
| tone noun | /ˈtəʊn/ | A specific pitch. |
| passion noun | /ˈpæʃən/ | A true desire sustained or prolonged. |
| hire verb | /ˈhaɪɹ/ | To obtain the services of in return for fixed payment. |
| scary adjective | /ˈskɛə.ɹi/ | Causing fear or anxiety |
| shake verb | /ˈʃeɪk/ | To cause (something) to move rapidly in opposite directions alternatingly. |
Phrasal verbs you will hear
| Word | Pronunciation | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| give up verb | To surrender (someone or something); to inform on (someone). | |
| sit down verb | To assume a sitting position from a standing position. | |
| come out verb | /ˌkʌm ˈaʊt/ | To be discovered; to be revealed. |
| jump up verb | To move from one position to a higher position by one jump. |
Sentences worth repeating
Short, complete lines from the video that you can reuse in everyday conversation:
- What are your strengths?
- What are your weaknesses?
- Why do you want to work here?
- Why should we hire you?
- What is your greatest strength?
Grammar in this video
The structures the speaker uses most, with the exact words from the video:
| Structure | In the video |
|---|---|
| Verb + -ing enjoy, keep, stop… + -ing — verbs that are followed by the -ing form | practice giving · start asking · keep working |
| Possibility with “might / may” might/may + verb — something that is possible but not certain | might not be · may be |
| Future with “will” will + verb — a decision, promise or prediction | will not perform · will grab · I'll do |
| Present continuous am/is/are + -ing — something happening right now or around now | they're just sitting · they're practicing · you're looking |
Pronunciation to watch
The speaker uses 42 contractions and reduced forms, such as I'm, you're, don't. Say them the short way, as you hear them.
- The “sh” and “zh” sounds: emotion /ɪˈməʊ.ʃən/, presentation /ˌpɹɛzn̩ˈteɪʃn̩/, passion /ˈpæʃən/, shake /ˈʃeɪk/
- Long words — get the stress right: vocabulary /vəˈkæb.jə.lə.ɹi/, adrenaline /əˈdɹɛnəlɪn/
How to practise with this video
- Listen to the whole video once without speaking and note the words you do not know.
- Start at 0.75× speed, shadow it sentence by sentence, then go back to normal speed once it feels easy.
- Record yourself and compare with the original, paying attention to words like relax, emotion, persistent.
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.