Shadowing Practice: Fall Forward- Denzel Washington Motivation [1 Minute Motivation] - Learn English Speaking with Video
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I found that nothing in life is worthwhile unless you take risks.
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Nothing.
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Nelson Mandela said, there is no passion to be found playing small
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and settling for a life that's less than the one you're capable of living.
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Now I'm sure in your experiences in school and applying to college
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and picking your major in deciding what you want to do with life.
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I'm sure people have told you to make sure you have something to fall back on.
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Make sure you got something to fall back on honey.
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But I never understood that concept.
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Having something to fall back on.
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If I'm going to fall, I don't want to fall back on anything except my faith.
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I want to fall forward.
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I figure at least this way I'll see what I'm going to hit.
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Fall forward.
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This is what I mean.
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Reggie Jackson struck out 2 ,600 times in his career.
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The most in the history of baseball.
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But you don't hear about the strikeouts.
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People remember the home runs.
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Fall forward.
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Thomas Edison conducted 1 ,000 failed experiments.
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Did you know that?
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I didn't remember that.
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Because the 1001st was the light bulb.
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Fall forward.
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Every failed experiment is one step closer to success.
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Vocabulary and speaking notes for this lesson
This video has 26 sentences and 203 words to shadow. The speech runs for 1:31. The speaker talks at a steady 134 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
13 words from the video worth learning, with pronunciation and meaning:
| Word | Pronunciation | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| experiment noun | /ɪkˈspɛɹ.ə.mənt/ | A test under controlled conditions made to either demonstrate a known truth, examine the validity of a hypothesis, or determine the efficacy or likelihood of… |
| passion noun | /ˈpæʃən/ | A true desire sustained or prolonged. |
| honey noun | /ˈhʌni/ | A sweet, viscous, gold-colored fluid produced from plant nectar by bees, and often consumed by humans. |
| settle verb | /ˈsɛtəl/ | To determine (something which was exposed to doubt or question); to resolve conclusively; to set or fix (a time, an order of succession, etc). |
| nelson noun | A score of 111, sometimes considered to be unlucky. | |
| worthwhile adjective | /ˌwɜː(ɹ)θˈwaɪl/ | Good and important enough to spend time, effort, or money on. |
| bulb noun | /ˈbʌlb/ | The bulb-shaped underground portion of a plant such as a tulip, consisting of a shortened stem and many fleshy scale leaves, from which the rest of the plant… |
| strikeout noun | /stɹaɪːkæʊt/ | An instance or the act of yielding nothing. |
| fail verb | /feɪl/ | To be unsuccessful. |
| strike verb | /stɹaɪk/ | To delete or cross out; to scratch or eliminate. |
| capable adjective | /ˈkeɪ.pə.bəl/ | Able and efficient; having the ability needed for a specific task; having the disposition to do something; permitting or being susceptible to something. |
| baseball noun | /ˈbeɪs.bɔl/ | A sport common in North America, the Caribbean, and East Asia, in which the objective is to strike a ball so that one of a nine-person team can run… |
| conduct verb | /ˈkɑndʌkt/ | To lead; to direct; to be in charge of (people or tasks) |
Phrasal verbs you will hear
| Word | Meaning |
|---|---|
| fall back on verb | To turn to as a substitute; to rely on as a backup. |
| strike out verb | To lash out; to strike or hit at someone or something, particularly something in arm's length of the striker and at or near the level of the striker's head. |
Pronunciation to watch
The speaker uses 9 contractions and reduced forms, such as I'm, don't, didn't. Say them the short way, as you hear them.
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 experiment, passion, honey.
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.