Shadowing Practice: How to ACTUALLY make the most of your 20s (without burning out) | Filmed on Insta360 GO Ultra - Learn English Speaking with YouTube
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Your 20s are confusing.
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Your 20s are confusing.
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You're not a kid, but you also don't feel like an adult.
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You're old enough to make your own decisions, but you still need to ask your parents for approval.
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You're supposed to be socializing and going out, but you also have to work 50 hours a week just to pay your bills.
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We're told that these are the best years of our life and to make the most of them.
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But half the time, we're just trying to survive.
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You have to find your purpose, land your dream job, fall in love, move out, make tons of money, travel the world, look good, stay healthy, and somehow still have time to rest.
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You don't need to do more to make the most of your 20s.
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You actually need to do less, and I'll tell you why.
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For most of my life, I was told that success meant constant progress, that if you're not hustling, you're falling behind.
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Growing up as a first-generation Korean American, my family drilled hard work and perfection into my mind.
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You have to be the best at everything you do, sports, school, skills, and if you weren't in the top 1%, you were not successful.
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That's how so many of us end up burned out before 25, chasing milestones we don't even care about, and trying to please everyone but ourselves.
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My early 20s was ridden with struggle and confusion.
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What was I supposed to do after college?
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Should I pursue my passion or a stable job?
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Who even am I?
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On social media, all my friends seemed to have everything figured out.
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A good job, a high-rise apartment, the perfect boyfriend.
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And here I was making videos alone in my bedroom, trying to prove to everyone that I could become successful on my own.
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But what if the goal of our 20s isn't to have it all figured out?
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What if it's to learn how to figure things out?
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Because the truth is, you're not supposed to be done with all your progress.
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You're supposed to be in progress.
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Lesson number one of how to make the most of your 20s, build self-awareness.
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The most valuable thing you can do in your 20s isn't to chase success.
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It's to get to know yourself and ask things like, what are my values?
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How do I like to spend my time?
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Who am I when no one's watching?
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For so long, the world labels us as a student, an athlete, a musician.
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But when we reach our 20s, sometimes those roles end and we have to figure out who we really are at our core.
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When you truly understand yourself, you stop wasting time trying to become somebody else.
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And suddenly, you're not influenced by peer pressure.
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Other opinions don't phase you anymore, and your life starts to feel more like yours.
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Real growth happens when you're alone, hustling in your room, and making decisions that are uncomfortable and honestly terrifying.
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You're not supposed to have everything figured out in your 20s.
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This is the time to be refining who you are and what you want.
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It means building habits and relationships that are aligned with who you want to become.
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Transformations and glow-ups don't happen instantly, and the overnight successes you see online took years to craft.
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This is the time to build the foundation for your life, take your health more seriously, challenge yourself to learn new skills, work through your childhood trauma to end generational patterns.
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You are and will always be in control of your own life.
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So that's why I think one of the most beautiful parts of being in my 20s is capturing every moment, big and small.
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And the way I've been romanticizing everyday moments is on my Insta360 Go Ultra.
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If you're a shy vlogger or content creator, this is the perfect camera for you.
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It's pocket-sized and ultra-portable, making it so easy to throw in your bag and take on the go.
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From outdoor morning walks to your cozy routine at home, the Insta360 Go Ultra is the perfect way to capture each little moment without having to set up a bulky camera.
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The actual camera body can be detached from the action pod and used on its own, and even when separated, it still supports remote control, so I can start and stop recording right from the pod or my phone.
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The camera itself has a magnetic backing so you can literally mount it on any metal surface for creative angles.
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And for non-metal surfaces, you can use the pivot stand or the sticky tabs which let you mount it anywhere without worrying about it falling.
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This is the best camera to capture every moment hands-free, especially with the magnetic pendant that you can wear under your shirt and attach the camera right on top.
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Of course, as a content creator, quality is number one to me.
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And with the Insta360 Go Ultra, the footage is beautiful.
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4K resolution with amazing low light performance, so even cozy dimly lit settings look cinematic.
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And for extra convenience, you can pair it with the Insta360 app that makes editing so easy.
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I can reframe, zoom, and export clips straight to my phone in seconds.
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So if you're in your 20s and you want to start romanticizing your life, I highly recommend checking out the Insta360 Go Ultra to document your best memories because these are the years you'll want to remember.
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Lesson number two is to do less intentionally.
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We often think of doing more to become successful, but what real successful people will tell you is that you often have to say no more than saying yes.
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Not every opportunity or relationship is meant for you.
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Not every career or city you move to is going to be the right fit.
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In fact, very few things in life are going to be right for you.
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There will be times you'll have to choose between going out to the bar versus staying home and working on your project.
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But doing less is how you create space for doing more.
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When you're not distracted by things that don't actually bring value to you, you're able to focus more on the things that truly matter to you.
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There's beauty in slowing down and there's power in quiet seasons when no one else sees your progress but you.
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Lesson number three, you are exactly where you need to be.
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It's okay to not have everything you want.
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You should be working hard towards your goals.
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But at the same time, the situation you're in right now is exactly meant for you.
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In my early 20s, my inner dialogue used to be filled with a lot of shoulds.
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I should be farther along.
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I should have more friends.
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I shouldn't be so depressed.
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But the truth is, should does not exist.
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When we tell ourselves we should, we're actually creating hypothetical realities.
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But this is pointless because the only timeline that exists is the one you're living in right now.
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So instead of entertaining the idea of should, you need to understand that you just are.
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There is nothing else you need to do to be worthy.
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If you decide you are already successful, then that's the truth.
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If you decide to already feel fulfilled, then you are.
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The only definition of happiness you're competing with is your own.
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Our 20s are the time to learn how to balance ambition with peace.
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It's realizing that you don't need to have the highest paying job to have a good life.
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You don't need to have your dream body to feel confident.
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And you don't have to be perfect to be loved.
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Every struggle, every mistake, and every win is a gift.
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You are exactly where you need to be.
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And everything that happens to you is for your highest good.
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Which leads us into lesson number four.
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Being present is the best thing you can do.
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We spend so much of our 20s thinking about the next thing.
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the next job, the next apartment, the next version of ourselves, but the version of yourself you've been waiting for is not in the future.
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She's right here.
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Being present doesn't mean you stop dreaming or setting goals.
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It just means you focus on what you can control, which is what you do in the present moment.
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One of the things I struggled with in my early 20s was watching my family get older, especially being away for four years during college.
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Coming back home was an eye-opener.
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I felt so much guilt wash over me.
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Like, I should have been there more.
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I should have called them.
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And even to this day, it's hard getting older because that means the people in my life get older as well.
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So spend time with the people you actually care about, not the ones who flake on you when you need them the most.
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One day, you'll look back and realize that all these in-between moments, like the late night drives, slow weekends, and family dinners, were actually the ones that mattered the most.
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Put your phone down, take a breath and look around you.
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Feel yourself in your own body.
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Be aware of your thoughts.
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Don't keep waiting for the right time to truly live your life.
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The right time is now.
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Lesson number five, this is not your peak.
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Everyone makes your 20s sound like this is the best your life is gonna get.
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This is when you'll be the prettiest, the most successful, the most social.
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And maybe that's why so many of us feel like we're already running out of time.
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But this narrative is completely false.
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Your 20s are not your peak.
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They're your practice.
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These are the years where you learn how to take care of yourself, where you make mistakes, fall apart, pick yourself back up and start over, where you figure out what you want and what you never want again.
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One day, you'll look back and realize how far you've come, how every wrong turn, every slow season, and every thought of self-doubt was quietly shaping you into the person you've always wanted to become.
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So don't rush the process.
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And capturing moments with my Insta360 has made me appreciate this chapter even more.
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Check out the link below.
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Don't be scared of getting older.
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Be grateful for every year, every month, and every day you get to live.
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Because the best parts of your life are still yet to come.
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Thank you.
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Why practice speaking with this video?
This video offers valuable insights into the realities of navigating your 20s, making it a rich context for english speaking practice. The speaker candidly discusses common struggles faced during this decade, including self-discovery, societal pressures, and the pursuit of success. By mimicking their tone and phrasing, learners can enhance their ability to express complex emotions and situations. Learning English with YouTube allows you to connect with relatable content while developing your vocabulary and fluency. Engaging in this practice not only aids in better conversation skills but also prepares you for topics you might encounter in IELTS speaking practice.
Grammar & Expressions in Context
The speaker utilizes various grammatical structures and expressions that are essential in everyday conversation:
- “What was I supposed to do after college?” - This rhetorical question emphasizes uncertainty and allows learners to practice asking questions about their experiences, which is vital for fluency.
- “You’re supposed to be in progress.” - The use of passive voice here emphasizes societal expectations, an important structure for expressing ideas without focusing on the doer.
- “You're not supposed to have everything figured out.” - This phrase serves as a practical example of using negatives, a common structure in English that often confounds learners.
- “This is the time to build the foundation for your life.” - The use of infinitive verbs (“to build”) is important for learners to practice goal-oriented expressions.
Common Pronunciation Traps
While listening and shadowing the speaker, be attentive to the following pronunciation challenges:
- “supposed to” - The pronunciation may blend the sounds together, sounding more like “s’posed to.” Paying attention to this can improve english pronunciation.
- “hustling” - Watch out for the “sling” part; it can be tricky. Practicing this word can enhance your ability to articulate similar verbs.
- “progress” - The speaker’s intonation may shift slightly, emphasizing the first syllable. Mimicking this can help you sound more natural.
Integrating these elements into your english speaking practice can enrich your vocabulary and improve your overall fluency. Therefore, leverage the video’s contextual richness to practice shadowing effectively, embracing both the content and the nuances of pronunciation and expression.
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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