Shadowing Practice: How to Stop Comparing Yourself to Others -Oprah Winfrey - Learn English Speaking with Video
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89 sentences
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Stop comparing yourself to other people.
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You're only on this planet to be you, not someone else's imitation of you.
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There really is a solution.
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And the solution is each and every one of you.
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Because you will become the new editorial gatekeepers,
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an ambitious army of truth seekers who will arm yourselves with the intelligence,
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with the insight and the facts necessary to strike down deceit.
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You're in a position to keep all of those who now disparage real news, you all are the ones who are going to keep those people in check.
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Why?
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Because you can push back and you can answer false narratives with real information and you can set the record straight.
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And you also have the ability and the power to give voice, as Dean Bae was saying,
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to people who desperately now need to tell their stories and have their stories told.
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And this is what I do know for sure because I've been doing it a long time.
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If you can capture the humanity of people, if you could just capture the humanity of the people, the stories that you're telling,
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you then get that much closer to your own humanity.
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And you can confront your bias and you can build your credibility and hone your instincts and compound your compassion.
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You can use your gifts, that's what you're really here to do, to illuminate the darkness in our world.
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We're supposed to see this moment in time for what it is.
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We're supposed to see through it and then transcend it.
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That is how you overcome hysteria.
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That is how you overcome the sniping at one another, the trolling, the mean-spirited partisanship on both sides of the aisle,
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the divisiveness, the injustices, and the out-and-out hatred.
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You use it.
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Use this moment to encourage you,
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to embolden you, and to literally push you into the rising of your life.
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And to borrow a phrase from my beloved mentor Maya Angelou, just like moons and like suns, with the certainty of tides,
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just like the hopes springing high, you will rise.
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You make the choice every day, every single day to exemplify honesty because the truth,
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let me tell you something about the truth, the truth exonerates and it convicts.
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It disinfects and it galvanizes.
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The truth has always been and will always be our shield against corruption, our shield against greed and despair.
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The truth is our saving grace.
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The question is, what are you willing to stand for?
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That question is going to follow you throughout your life.
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And here's how you answer it.
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You put your honor where your mouth is.
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Put your honor where your mouth is.
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When you give your word, keep it.
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Show up.
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Do the work.
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Get your hands dirty.
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And then you'll begin to draw strength from the understanding, the true knowing that history is still being written.
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You're writing it every day.
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The will's still in spin.
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And what you do or what you don't do will be a part of it.
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A couple other thoughts before I go.
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Eat a good breakfast.
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It really pays off.
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Pay your bills on time.
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Recycle.
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Make your bed.
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Aim high.
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Say thank you to people and actually really mean it.
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Ask for help when you need it.
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And put your phone away at the dinner table.
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Just sit on it.
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Really.
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And know that what you tweet
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and post in Instagram today might be asked about in a job interview tomorrow or 20 years from tomorrow.
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Be nice to little kids.
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Be nice to your elders.
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Be nice to animals and know that it's better to be interested than interesting.
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Invest in a quality mattress.
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I'm telling you Your back will thank you later.
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And don't cheap out on your shoes.
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You need to know this.
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Your job is not always going to fulfill you.
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There will be some days that you just might be bored.
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Other days you may not feel like going to work at all.
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Go anyway.
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And remember that your job is not who you are.
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It's just what you're doing on the way to who you will become.
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Every remedial chore, every boss who takes credit for your ideas, that is going to happen.
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Look for the lessons because the lessons are always there.
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And the number one lesson I can offer you where your work is concerned is this.
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so skilled, so vigilant, so flat out fantastic at what you do,
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that your talent cannot be dismissed.
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Stop comparing yourself to other people.
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You're only on this planet to be you, not someone else's imitation of you you.
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So I hold you in the light and I wish you curiosity and confidence and I wish you ethics and enlightenment.
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I wish you guts.
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Every great decision I've ever made I trust in my gut and goodness.
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I wish you purpose and the passion that goes along with that purpose.
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And here's what I really hope.
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I hope that every one of you contributes to the conversation of our culture
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and our time and to some genuine communication
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which means you have to connect to people exactly where they are not where you are
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but where they are and I hope you shake things up
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and when the time comes to bet on yourself I hope you double down Bet on yourself.
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Vocabulary and speaking notes for this lesson
This B2 speaking lesson is built on the video “How to Stop Comparing Yourself to Others -Oprah Winfrey”. This video has 89 sentences and 904 words to shadow. The speech runs for 7:06. The speaker talks at a steady 127 words per minute, a comfortable pace for shadowing. 87% of the words are among the 3,000 most common in English, so the vocabulary is easy to follow.
Key vocabulary in this video
The 15 most advanced words in the video, with pronunciation and meaning:
| Word | Pronunciation | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| imitation noun | /ɪmɪˈteɪ̯ʃən/ | The act of imitating. |
| deceit noun | /dɪˈsiːt/ | An act or practice intended to deceive; a trick. |
| disinfect verb | /dɪs.ɪnˈfɛkt/ | To sterilize by the use of cleaning agent. |
| disparage verb | /dɪsˈpæɹɪd͡ʒ/ | To dishonor by a comparison with what is inferior; to lower in rank or estimation by actions or words; to speak slightingly of; to depreciate; to undervalue. |
| divisiveness noun | The characteristic of being divisive. | |
| embolden verb | /ɛmˈboʊld(ə)n/ | To render (someone) bolder or more courageous; to encourage, to hearten. |
| exemplify verb | /ɛɡˈzɛmplɪfaɪ/ | To show or illustrate by example. |
| exonerate verb | /ɪɡˈzɑnəˌɹeɪt/ | To free (someone) from an obligation, responsibility or task. |
| galvanize verb | /ˈɡælvənaɪ̯z/ | To shock or stimulate into sudden activity, as if by electric shock. |
| gatekeeper noun | /ˈɡeɪtˌki.pɚ/ | A person who guards or monitors passage through a gate. |
| hysteria noun | /hɪˈstɛɹiə/ | Behavior exhibiting excessive or uncontrollable emotions, in a wide range from joy to panic but usually including anxiety or fear. |
| illuminate verb | /ɪˈl(j)umɪneɪt/ | To shine light on something. |
| partisanship noun | /ˌpɑːtɪˈzænʃɪp/ | An inclination to be partisan or biased; partiality. |
| recycle verb | /ɹəˈsaɪkəl/ | To break down and reuse component materials. |
| remedial adjective | /ɹɪˈmi.di.əl/ | curative; providing a remedy |
Phrasal verbs you will hear
| Word | Meaning |
|---|---|
| double down verb | To double one's wager, particularly, the name of a specific doubling bet allowed in blackjack. |
| go along with verb | To acquiesce to or comply with a proposal, despite lacking a desire or value for it. |
| pay off verb | To bribe, especially to deter oversight. |
| see through verb | To perceive visually through something transparent. |
| show up verb | To appear, arrive, or attend, especially suddenly or erratically. |
| strike down verb | To kill (someone or something); to cause to die suddenly. |
Grammar in this video
The structures the speaker uses most, with the exact words from the video:
| Structure | In the video |
|---|---|
| Passive voice be + past participle — the focus is on what happens, not who does it | being written · might be asked · cannot be dismissed |
| Present perfect have/has + past participle — a past action that still matters now | has always been · I've ever made |
| Relative clauses who / which + clause — extra information about a person or thing | those who now · people who desperately |
Pronunciation to watch
The speaker uses 15 contractions and reduced forms, such as you're, don't, I've. Say them the short way, as you hear them.
- The “sh” and “zh” sounds: imitation /ɪmɪˈteɪ̯ʃən/, partisanship /ˌpɑːtɪˈzænʃɪp/, compassion /kəmˈpæʃ.ən/, ambitious /æmˈbɪʃ.əs/
- Long words — get the stress right: imitation /ɪmɪˈteɪ̯ʃən/, exemplify /ɛɡˈzɛmplɪfaɪ/, exonerate /ɪɡˈzɑnəˌɹeɪt/, illuminate /ɪˈl(j)umɪneɪt/, partisanship /ˌpɑːtɪˈzænʃɪp/
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 imitation, deceit, disinfect.
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.