Shadowing Practice: how I journal to have my life together (simple & efficient) - Learn English Speaking with Video

Hi, today I wanted to show you how I journal and I journaled for over 10 years now.

I'm back in my childhood room so I can even show you the journals that I already filled.

This is just one part of it.

The other ones are in the back which I'll show you as well.

Basically because I've done it for this amount of time, I just want to share what has worked for me and what has stuck with me throughout this decade of journaling.

As someone who has a lot of thoughts and this can be quite existential at times, journaling has been really great let's just start with my setup

this is my current journal it is the muji pocket note

and this one doesn't open flat it's also very bendy so

if you write on it you need a surface you know what i like about this journal is

that you can just really decorate it how you want it

this is my first year actually putting some drawings on it

and some like some personalization before my my journals look like

this i never really decorated my journals every Every time I open a new journal, I usually get a new notebook,

but I think I will stick with the Muji one because I really like it.

It will just look more used and more loved in because you don't have that when you have like these hardcover journals.

In terms of pens, I'm very not anal about my pens, but I do have a favorite pen.

It's the 0.38 pencil by Uni.

I got it from Adaiso.

It comes out really thin and super aesthetic.

but i also have a bunch of other ones

that i just grabbed i saw a lot of people with like a leather journal

and have multiple journals in one this is my next evolutionary step

but for now i am afraid

that i put everything in one journal like i put my dreams in one journal like everything

and i found it to be the most simple i don't have to carry all these journals

but i do believe

when i have like a leather strap i can put more journals in like i have some journals open

that are just for goals

but i don't find myself writing in them i would just

put everything in here now moving on to the actual journal practices

that have stuck with me throughout these 10 years number one is monthly wrap-ups i don't know

if it's because when you get older time just goes faster

when i do my monthly wrap-up i feel like i have some sense of control over the crazy time

that like it just goes by so fast when you have intention

which monthly wrap-ups make you face you just move through life not asleep

and that's kind of my biggest fear is having all this time flying by

and not using it intentionally

and then at the end of life i'm dying with all these regrets

but let's not go so existential i will share with you the monthly prompts

that i use monthly wrap-ups are great to keep a bigger picture your bigger goal in mind

but at the same time they help you acknowledge the good

and the blessings

and the cool thing is what i've been enjoying is i read back what has worked the habits

that have worked the mindset that have worked and

and then I can just be reminded every single day or when I need them.

Yeah, I just feel like life is not linear.

It's like a spiral.

You kind of lose some mindsets or lose some habits throughout, but you can always pick them up,

especially when you have them kind of documented what has worked this is number one number two is gratitude journaling

and i was introduced to journaling actually through gratitude journaling i had a face

so i would religiously write down what i'm thankful for every single day i think i did it morning

and night and i did it for consecutive years

and this is how i kind of got introduced to journaling

the key is to be very specific about what you're grateful for not just i'm grateful for kindness

but like for example i'm I'm grateful for a stranger smiling at me today and actually feeling it.

Another thing that I can recommend is when you have down phase

or like a phase where life just feels very challenging sometimes, start saying thank you for it.

Like just write in your journal, thank you for this particular problem.

And then you kind of continue to write.

And that is not to bypass the negative emotions, but to kind of open this new perspective in your brain of potential growth opportunities

or good sides of being in this challenge, you know, in this discomfort.

And lastly, number three is brain dumps, expressive writing or morning pages, however you want to call it.

It is essentially just writing without lifting your pen for let's say one, two, three, four pages.

And the goal is to fill up the pages what it

does it just helps you organize your thoughts reduce the pressure

because when you just have the goal to finish a page

or two pages you just start writing

but what i found very romantic about writing is

that you spend time with yourself

so intimately you share your thoughts there's no barrier there's no

limits don't have to hold back your negativity don't have to filter anything

because you don't have to worry about dragging someone else down you know

and you can just vomit your thoughts and it's just

so intimate to be with yourself and give yourself the space to just express

and listen it's really kind to yourself

so apart from just listening to yourself this also has great benefits for me when i write i process things.

I close thoughts in my brain through writing.

I don't know I just feel it lighter.

In the book The Artist's Way by Julia Cameron she does I think four Dina four pages every single morning.

For me it took 25 minutes to do it every morning so I stopped doing it.

These days what I do is just write in these Dina five pages.

I don't really have a set routine timing anymore.

I just do it when I feel like it and it tends to be almost every single day.

When I'm not doing great I don't write

but I don't really beat myself up for that anymore too

because self-care or these tools should be there to help you not another source of insecurity

or thing that you beat yourself up over

so my attitude towards like journaling has really evolved

so these are all the ways that I journal currently and

that I have picked up along those years

and what has stuck with me I hope this was helpful in any way

and I hope to see you in the next video bye-bye

Thank you.

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Who Is This Video For?

This video is perfect for intermediate English learners who want to practice real-life conversation skills while picking up practical habits. Whether you’re aiming to improve your speaking fluency, expand your vocabulary, or just learn how to talk about daily routines naturally, the casual, conversational tone makes it ideal for shadow speech practice. It’s also great for anyone who wants to learn English with videos that feel like a chat with a friend—no formal lessons, just authentic dialogue.

Words & Idioms Worth Stealing

Wrap-ups: A summary of events. Example: "I do a monthly wrap-up to track my goals."
Anal about: Very particular or fussy. Example: "She’s not anal about pens, but she has a favorite."
Existential: Relating to big questions about life. Example: "Her thoughts can get existential at night."
Stick with: Continue using or doing. Example: "I’ll stick with this journal because it works."

These phrases are used in everyday contexts, making them easy to incorporate into your own speech. Practice saying them out loud—they’ll add depth to your conversations!

How to Get the Accent Right

The speaker’s tone is warm and relaxed, with natural pauses and casual intonation. To nail it, focus on reducing stress on certain words (like "just" or "really") and using a rising tone when sharing personal stories. For shadowing practice, pause the video after short phrases and repeat them, mimicking the rhythm and emphasis. Pay attention to how she says "I don’t know if it’s because"—the connected speech ("don’t know if it’s") is key to sounding fluent. Use a shadowing site to slow down the audio if needed, and practice daily to build muscle memory. Remember, the goal is to sound natural, not perfect—so have fun with it!

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	I've done · has been · have stuck
Passive voice be + past participle — the focus is on what happens, not who does it	be reminded · was introduced
Verb + -ing enjoy, keep, stop… + -ing — verbs that are followed by the -ing form	start saying · start writing
Future with “will” will + verb — a decision, promise or prediction	I'll show · will stick · will just look

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.

Shadowing technique: read the full step-by-step guide →

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