Shadowing Practice: how to actually create a meaningful year ✨ - Learn English Speaking with YouTube
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New Year, New Me.
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New Year, New Me.
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No, wait.
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New Year, Healthier Me.
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New Year, Wealthier Me?
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New Year, As Me.
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At the beginning of every year,
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we're so busy coming up with new ways we can improve ourselves.
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Only when we're healthier and wealthier,
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then we can be happier.
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But what if I just skip all of that and just be happy now?
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As I am with my flaws and all.
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Don't get me wrong.
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I love the New Year energy,
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where we collectively feel the motivation to live our best lives.
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But I'm saying that our best lives can start now.
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not conditional upon having a six-pack,
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new planner, finding true love, and 10-step morning routine.
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Can we just enjoy all the beautiful things about life as we are?
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In a world obsessed with constant improvement,
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that seems like the real challenge.
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This year, I just want to know what it feels like to walk through a forest in the rain.
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I I want to catch up with an old friend in a cozy cafe.
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I want to run through the fields with my dogs and watch a musical with my husband.
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I want to swim in the ocean where my feet can't touch the ground and take photos of cool-looking clouds.
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For so many years, I've been living my life like an instructional manual,
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when our lives are actually like poetry.
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It's not meant to be linear.
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There are pauses, contradictions, and silences.
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And somehow, even when it's incomplete, it's whole.
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We just have to be present to experience it all.
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Last year, my one word intention was experiment.
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I had just moved back to Portugal and I was trying to establish a life here.
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So it just made sense to kind of go with the flow and say yes to everything.
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I launched my essentials journal.
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I had a retreat with one of my friends.
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I also bought this house and I met a lot of cool people along the way
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and did a lot of cool things.
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But definitely towards the end of the year,
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I felt that the season was shifting.
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I would say 2025 was like spring to me,
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but now going into 2026,
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I feel like I'm in my winter season and my one word intention for this year is going to be focus.
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Instead of setting goals to be better,
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fitter, healthier, wealthier, I feel like just having one word intentions or themes is a gentler approach.
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Besides, if we really had a goal,
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we wouldn't need to declare it on New Year's Day,
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and we would already be doing it.
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Life shifts so quickly to be just contained by rigid goals and milestones,
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but intentions leave room for life to move us,
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surprise us, and still guides us forward.
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So I want to ask you,
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what season of life are you in right now?
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What is the theme or intentions for this year moving forward?
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We think of our lives as one big timeline,
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but in truth, life is just one day at a time.
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I know it's such a simple concept,
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but really it gives us perspective.
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The past is already gone and done,
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and tomorrow is never guaranteed.
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What we do have is just today,
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and each morning we get to choose how we want to fill that time.
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I think I mentioned a couple of videos ago that I am currently writing a book.
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I've always wanted to write a book.
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This has been such a dream of mine.
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But I realized that I've actually been writing my book for the past couple of years.
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I mean, I write my scripts for these videos and I write in my journal every single day.
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I guess what I'm trying to say is I was just so hung up on this idea of being a writer,
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of what that actually means,
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that I forgot to realize that you become a writer by writing.
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And that's it.
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And if I continue to do it today,
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every day, then that book and the identity just kind of forms on its own.
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So if you want to be an artist, create art.
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If you want to be a runner,
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get your shoes and go for a run.
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If you want to be someone who eats healthier,
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cook a healthy meal for dinner tonight.
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We don't become who we want to be by declaring it.
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We become by doing it.
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The small actions we take every single day form a constellation,
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and over time, that the constellation leads to our North Star.
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If I can give you any kind of encouragement,
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that is to just not put so much pressure on yourself to be the noun,
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to fit into this label perfectly,
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whatever it is, and just focus on the doing.
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And in the doing, I notice that you realize
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if you actually love the process of it or if you are just chasing an identity.
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Do you guys chronically use your calendars?
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Because I know I do and I usually use it to set reminders
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and deadlines and just for things that I need to remember,
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I notice every time something gets put on my calendar,
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I always prioritize it and I always try to get it done.
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And then I got to thinking,
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why do we not place the same importance for the things that we actually value?
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I think it's so ironic that it's my calendar and it's my time,
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but I was scheduling it for everybody else except for me.
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So we're going to fix that this year and we're going to just take a moment.
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I want you to write a list of all the things that you want to experience this year.
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And since it's already marked on your calendar,
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you can then schedule the rest of your life around these important things that actually add value to your life.
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what's one thing that you want to leave behind this year one thing person
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or an idea that is no longer serving you what are the things in your home
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that you don't align with energetically what thought is getting in the way of you moving forward
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so i was just kind of scrolling through the gallery on my phone the other day
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and just kind of reflecting on the past year the things that I've done,
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the things that I took photos of,
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and I didn't realize how much of the past that I was still carrying with me.
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I noticed that there were a lot of internal monologue happening,
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the should've, could've, would'ves, and the regrets,
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the negative self-talk, and just kind of unresolved emotions that came up.
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And the thing with mental clutter is that we can't see it,
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but we're carrying it around with us all the time
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and just imagine year after year not dealing with it just how heavy
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that load feels to us we can't just pack it up
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and drop it off at a donation center but we can adjust them
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and we can find a gentle approach to be able to kind of acknowledge them
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and brush them off when they do come up.
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What truly helped me the most is being unreasonably forgiving with myself because if I don't,
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I know that nobody else will.
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I literally say this out loud to myself.
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Well, you didn't know what you didn't know.
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Maybe you tried your best and your best was just not good enough for that person.
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Maybe there was a blessing in disguise.
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This is out of your control now so let's move along.
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I asked you guys on Instagram what you are letting go of this year
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and so many of you guys had very similar answers to me
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and I think it's important to to do a ritual that resonates with you.
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Write it down on a journal and watch it burn or you can rip it up.
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You can try guided meditations or sound healing to clear your mind or you can even try somatic shaking,
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or just kind of shaking it off physically so that you can let go and release what no longer is serving you.
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One of the most memorable quotes from Little Prince,
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the problem is not growing up, it's forgetting.
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Somewhere along the way we forget that we're not just our responsibilities and our lives are not just problems to be solved.
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We forget that within us there is a soul,
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our inner child waiting to explore,
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to feel deeply, to play,
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love, and to find connection.
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So I go to sleep pretty late
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and I've always woken up pretty late as well and this really doesn't coincide with how society operates.
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Of course the people closest to me were always letting me know
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that this is a bad habits and that I need to change it.
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But I don't know if there's any other night owls out there,
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but you guys know that when the sun goes down that there's this whole nother world that opens up.
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I really do believe that there are just some books
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that are meant to be read at 2am and
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that you're supposed to listen to some songs when it's like dead silent in the middle of the night.
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Yes, it's probably not responsible,
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but it makes my heart so happy.
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I've stopped trying to change this about myself and fully embracing it.
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And I was thinking if this is precious to me,
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I have to schedule my life so that it makes sense for me to enjoy this time.
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Like I said in the beginning of the video,
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I feel like I've lived my life like an instruction manual
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where I was kind of creating this hurdles for myself and then jumping over them and feeling productive about it.
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But I think it's very important to pay attention to what really makes you feel alive.
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And this is a promise to myself,
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not just this year, but moving forward that life is too short,
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life is too precious.
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I will not do something unless it really lights up my soul.
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And I usually know this by doing a quick gut check.
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I notice that my intuition and my intuitive voice sounds very calm,
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but over here, my fear and my doubts,
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it always creeps in, but it's always in the form of a question and it's usually disguised as a practical option.
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The things that we want in life,
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the things that truly make us feel alive,
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it's going to be very inconvenient.
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It's going to require us to kind of step outside of our normal timeline,
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society's timeline, and it might not even make sense to you or to anybody else in your life,
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but if it feels right, then go for it.
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You won't have any regrets.
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I'm coming to the terms that our desire to want more,
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to be more, to have more,
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is just simply part of being human.
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But we don't have to be in constant pursuit to live a good life.
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If we could just truly understand how capable we are,
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how often things are quietly working in our favor,
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how we're being guided even when it doesn't feel like it,
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maybe we wouldn't worry so much about the little details and trust our hearts a little bit more.
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Why practice speaking with this video?
This video offers a unique perspective on New Year's intentions and personal growth. By reflecting on how we can embrace our current selves and live fully in the moment, it provides valuable content for English learners. Practicing speaking with this video can help you articulate your thoughts on self-improvement and happiness, allowing you to express your personal experiences in English. Engaging with the speaker's narrative encourages you to explore your feelings while enhancing your spoken language skills. Whether it's discussing your own goals or sharing experiences of self-acceptance, learning English with YouTube can bring these topics to life through relatable scenarios.
Grammar & Expressions in Context
While listening to the speaker, you'll encounter several expressive grammar structures and phrases that are useful for effective communication. Here are some examples to pay attention to:
- Conditional Statements: The speaker often uses conditional phrases like "what if I just skip all of that and just be happy now?" These expressions are important for discussing hypothetical situations and making suggestions.
- Present Continuous Tense: Phrases such as "I'm saying that our best lives can start now" indicate ongoing actions. This tense is crucial for expressing current thoughts and experiences.
- Descriptive Language: The use of rich imagery, such as "walk through a forest in the rain," enhances storytelling. Practice incorporating descriptive phrases into your speaking to make your narratives more engaging.
Common Pronunciation Traps
Pronunciation can be challenging, particularly with certain phrases found in this video. Here are a few tips for clearer speech:
- Words with Multiple Syllables: Terms like "intention," "beautiful," and "experience" can trip up learners. Practice pronouncing these slowly, breaking them down into syllables if needed.
- Emphasis on Key Words: The speaker emphasizes words like “happy” and “present” to convey their importance. Make sure to practice stressing key words in your speech for greater clarity and impact.
- Contractions and Linking Sounds: Phrases like "can we just" can sound faster when spoken naturally. Focus on how native speakers link sounds together to improve your fluency.
Utilizing a shadowing app or shadowing site can be especially beneficial for practicing these elements, enhancing your English speaking practice through repetition and imitation. Embrace the process as you dive deep into this meaningful content!
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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