Shadowing Practice: How to start a journal you’ll LOVE USING! - Learn English Speaking with Video

Which one is going to be more important for you the pen or the journal?

That's the question you have to ask yourself first.

Being a pen and journal lover luckily has worked out for me because I enjoy using all forms of writing tools.

I can go from gel pens, pencils, ballpoint pens.

So for me the notebook is going to be what takes priority over the writing tool.

And as someone who's journaled for over 15 years, years I have finally found what I would call like journal piece where I have found the ideal notebook

and what works when being consistent with the practice which I will share with you right now.

And here's the thing when it comes to picking

and finding your everyday journal that you're going to love using size really does matter

because you have to think about how you're going to use this

and if it's going to be convenient for what you need it to do.

Some of you may enjoy something that's going to be more pocket size

because it's easy to carry around it's just more functional for you it's less intimidating

but for others like myself something like this I can go through in a matter of a week

because I have large handwriting

and I don't feel like this is sufficient for my everyday journal more like maybe just everyday scratch pad

or just maybe logging tasks but for deep dive journaling

or to reflect something like these that are going to be larger could be an option for you and something to consider.

In the journaling world these are the popular sizes that you may come across.

We're looking at pocket size.

This is a 6 size.

This is a B6 size just to give you a visual

so you could see and how size does matter when picking out your ideal journal.

We have A5 size which I think a lot of you are familiar with that you will find mainly at your bookstores.

Typically it's the A5 size and then the pocket size and And then this is a B5 size, which is very comparable to like a composition notebook.

So that is a very, very important tip and step, I would say, when considering your journal.

What size do you know you will gravitate towards and that is going to be suitable for your needs?

Maybe you're not an everyday journaler.

Maybe you just want to jot down here and there.

Something like a pocket size could work for you because it's not as intimidating.

You don't have to go through so many pages to actually finish the booklet.

But if you know that you want to kind of get comfy

and cozy in a notebook and you don't like to hop out of a notebook as quickly like I do, then you may want to look into maybe an A6 because it's just above the pocket size.

And then the B6 is actually right above the A6.

So it's kind of like in that sweet spot where it's not as big and intimidating as an A5, but it's not as teeny tiny as like an A6.

now once you determine what size is going to work well

for you I think this is an important factor to consider

and it is if you are team hardcover or softcover

so this is clearly a hardcover

and I would say this goes in with you know your intentions of how you're going to use your journal

if you know that this is going to be going in your backpack if you plan on traveling

if you're going to be throwing this around in your purse like maybe this is something to consider

the hardcover because it will protect your pages and it's just definitely a lot more durable.

Now when I was falling in love with my journaling practice and really diving deep into daily writing and creating,

I was trying to figure out what exactly was it about this particular journal

that I absolutely loved reaching for and that's when I realized in time it was actually the cover.

because it's like a soft cover it just felt very comforting

for me it didn't feel stiff it wasn't too hard

but another thing about you know soft covers for me I realized is

that when I'm like on the go or

if I'm done with my journaling session I can literally just

put like my pen let me use um this one

because it's like a chunkster I would just like put my pen here in my journal

and I would just close it and then this particular journal is the Moleskine Expanded.

Their normal Moleskine is this.

They're regular so the Expanded has like 400 extra pages

but what I loved about that is that I could just put in my pen, my pen of choice or my pencil without having to worry

if it has a pen loop or not but another thing that you can do of course

is customize your journal so you could love it and use it even more.

So I've shown before in the past consider customizing it yourself

adding some stickers some decor putting a label on it putting some type of identifier switching it up especially

if you are finding yourself gravitating towards solid colors like me.

I mean I'm loving black if you could not tell I tend to go with journals

that have that classic black color but

because they're all the same color the identifier is the sticker

or the decoration or the label so decorating it can be fun

and another way that just personalizes the journaling experience for you

but also adding your own little modifications like a pen loop

if the journal does not come with a pen loop

or an elastic you can always do

that yourself you can slit in you know little cuts right here

and then thread through in elastic which I've done before in the past with other with other journals.

Say you come across a notebook that you absolutely love

but it doesn't have all the features

that you need consider again just getting your own elastic

that you can just stick on here

and then the elastic loop along with the elastic closure you can easily find at like craft supply stores

and then just make your own slit right here and then you have your own modification for your journal.

Now for the soft cover that is obviously my preference

and aside from the fact

that it can work as a pen holder unintentionally by throwing it in there I also again I like

that it's like flexible it's not too stiff I don't you know have to fight to keep the page open

and that's another quality that I noticed throughout the years.

These are all things I think you'll come across as you experiment

and you kind of get to get familiar with certain brands

and makers but for me I need a journal

that can lay all the way flat so

that way I am not like fighting against the page it just lays there for me

and then when I'm ready to journal I can journal on you know this side

or I can journal on that side I'm not having to fight against it

and pressing down my wrist and making sure you know like it stays down.

So that's really, really important.

And another reason why I find myself returning to the particular journals that I love,

but these are all important factors that play into your journal practice that you may not notice the feel of it, the cover design, you know,

the, the actual design of the, the binding.

Another important thing that I consider too is the page design.

Now I know not everyone is picky like I may be

but I realized again in the last you know couple of years

that the reason why I could never finish a journal in the past was because of the page designs.

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A lot of my journal friends they love the lines and I noticed for me that was very very distracting.

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I felt very limited especially when it comes to grids.

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I you know what worked for others was not working for me

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and I could not understand why my brain could not connect

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and gravitate towards these popular well-known formats and layouts

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that everyone else loved and that worked very well for them and it was because of the design of the pages.

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They were very distracting, it felt very limiting and as someone

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that has large handwriting and someone that just kind of likes to write fluidly

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and intuitively sometimes i just want to write off into the corner

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or sideways i just felt like the lines and the grids

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and even sometimes the dot grids can just be limiting

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and why i could never really connect and stay in one journal for

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so long and

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that is where a lot of my subscribers here you guys realize i have kind of found i think planner

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and journal uh piece through finding this particular notebook that is blank.

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I know blank is not everyone's favorite but this is just what really works for me.

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It's blank, it's soft cover, and it's this right size where it's not too tiny, it's not too big, it's just enough for my large handwriting

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and to just dump out all of the ideas and the projects

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and just kind of the review of the day

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that I you know wants to pour into these pages now another important factor

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that i did not even realize was a thing until recently

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was the scarcity how rare is it to come across the journal

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or the notebook that i will absolutely love or

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that i have fallen in love with because there are brands

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and certain notebooks and paper qualities that i have enjoyed but

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that are unfortunately like no longer the same or in production

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or just do not make any more so that also limits you know my

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creativity and me using it because now it feels rare.

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Now it feels kind of, um, kind of, yeah, scarce and I'm afraid to use it

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because I know it's no longer in production or the quality has changed.

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So you want to think about how accessible is the notebook that you have come across?

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Is it something that you just happen to randomly find at a thrift store

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or at a discounted department store or is it something

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that you can find regularly you know at your local bookshop or at your big box store stationary shop.

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Now another thing to also keep in mind is

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that what may work for the mass majority may not work for you

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and that's something I have definitely learned throughout the years

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is you know just because something is trending

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or hyped on social media there could be a reason yes definitely

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but just because it does not work for you

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or did not click for you do not feel bad do not feel guilty

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and certainly do not feel like you have to drag your way through the the journal

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because you've invested in it it's definitely okay to you know

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put it back on the shelf revisit it another time

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or just maybe just have it as a nice dust collector on your your bookshelf

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and sometimes too you invest a lot of money in something

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and you realize that because it feels so precious or

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because again it's no longer in production

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or it was kind of like a one-off thing you are

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now you know intimidated to really use it to the fullest abilities

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and that's why I can find this pretty much at any local bookstore or even online and there's no problem.

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Plus I always get these on clearance or discounted and that always works well for me.

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Now speaking of clearance this is my daily planner

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that I found for three dollars last year

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that I shared with my subscribers here and I will be setting this up next.

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It is a daily agenda.

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Maybe there are certain features on the page

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that you just don't connect with and you were kind of maybe hoping

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that the dates weren't there or certain icons in this case again

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because this was only three dollars I knew I could reuse this in some way

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and maybe I don't want to use this as an everyday journal I'm sorry as an everyday planner

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but I can definitely still use the lines as an everyday like journal

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so these dates do not have to be there

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but I still scored and I came across a win for three dollars

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and I can just use this correction tape which apparently is almost out

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because it's giving me some trouble

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but I will show you guys how I use my planner in the the next few videos

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if you're interested but I hope this has helped you decide

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and inspired you on how to find the one how to find the journal

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that you are going to love connecting with using it doesn't

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have to be every day it could just be whenever you feel pulled to use it

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but something to consider what is going to be more important for you the journal

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or the pen again for me the journal is priority the journal is life

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and I can work around the paper quality

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because as you have seen I have so many you know pens that I can choose from

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but the journal is the thing that's going to matter most

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this is the one that's going to archive all of my memories

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and my daily events and my ideas

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and I want it to be in something that I enjoy looking at

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and flipping through and something that I'm just going to be inspired

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and motivated to connect with so let me know your thoughts and I'll see you in the next video

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What You'll Learn

This video helps you build two key speaking skills: descriptive language for everyday objects (like describing journal sizes and features) and conversational flow when explaining personal preferences. You’ll also practice organizing your thoughts logically, as the speaker moves from size to cover type—great for structuring your own explanations in English.

Listen For These Sounds

Notice the connected speech in phrases like "it's just more functional" (where "it's just" links to "more" as "it's jus'more") and "I don't feel like this is sufficient" (where "don't feel like" reduces to "don't feellike"). The speaker also uses casual reductions like "kind of" and "sort of" (e.g., "it's kind of like in that sweet spot"), which are common in natural English. Listen for how "going to" shortens to "gonna" in "what size do you know you will gravitate towards and that is going to be suitable."

Say It Like a Native

To mirror the speaker’s rhythm, focus on stressing key words like "size," "priority," and "durable"—these are the ideas she wants to emphasize. Use the shadowing technique by pausing the video and repeating her sentences immediately, matching her pace and intonation. For example, when she says, "Being a pen and journal lover luckily has worked out for me," stress "pen," "journal," "luckily," and "worked out" to capture her warm, conversational tone. Practice shadow speech with phrases like "this is a B6 size just to give you a visual"—notice how she softens "just" and flows into "to give." This will help you improve English pronunciation and sound more natural. Remember, the goal is to mimic not just the words, but the feeling behind them—she’s sharing a passion, so let your voice sound enthusiastic too! Keep practicing with shadowspeak and you’ll soon find your own comfortable rhythm in English.

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	has worked · have finally found · I've shown
Possibility with “might / may” might/may + verb — something that is possible but not certain	may enjoy · may come · may want
Verb + -ing enjoy, keep, stop… + -ing — verbs that are followed by the -ing form	enjoy something · loved reaching · consider customizing
Past continuous was/were + -ing — an action in progress at a moment in the past	was falling · was trying · was not working

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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