Shadowing Practice: How to stop overthinking? - Learn English Speaking with Video

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Do you ever feel like you're overcomplicating every little detail in your life?

Are you tired of being an overthinker and watching it stall your progress?

Well, welcome to the club because I am exactly the same way.

Fun fact, it took me a couple of months to create this YouTube channel

and upload my first video because I was overthinking every little detail.

In this video, I'm going to talk about strategies and techniques that helped me to overcome this mindset.

How to stop overthinking.

So what's the difference between productive thinking and overthinking?

Where do we draw the line?

Productive thinking is goal -oriented.

It leads to clarity.

It's time -bounded.

You have time frame in which you have to make a decision.

It is flexible, meaning you adapt as you go.

It's empowering.

It doesn't drain you of energy and it motivates you.

Overthinking, on the other hand, drains energy, consists of looping thoughts,

it's unproductive, time -consuming, and it leads to avoidance and procrastination.

There is one crucial thing you have to understand about overthinking.

Overthinking does not equal problem solving.

If you think that you can solve all of your problems just by passively thinking about them, I hate to break it to you,

but it's not going to happen.

Problem solving is action -oriented.

It helps you to solve your problem and take action.

Overthinking, on the other hand, is quite passive and it's just rumination.

Overthinking rarely leads to any results.

Problem solving, on the other hand, is a powerful strategy that can help you to get out of this vicious cycle.

It's important to understand that distinction because a lot of people assume

that just by thinking about the problem for hours they will find a solution.

In reality, however, it's not how things work.

So what do we do about it?

How do we get out of this vicious cycle and beat overthinking once and for all?

Let's talk about some of the things that work for me.

Set boundaries when making decisions.

Overthinking is quite time -consuming.

The more you think about something, the more time you waste.

When I was about to create this YouTube channel, I wasted weeks and months thinking about the most unimportant things that you can possibly imagine.

When I look back on some of the things

that I was worried about just a couple of months ago i understand how pointless it was

and how much time i have wasted in the process

if i just started right then i would achieve much more

so as humans

when we make decisions we always try to find the best possible outcome we always try to make decisions

that will lead us to success but unfortunately right

and wrong decisions don't really exist because no matter what you do whether it's failing or whether it's being very successful,

you still get a very valuable thing.

You get experience and you get data.

And when you get that kind of information, you can later adapt to it.

You can find something valuable in the lessons.

What I'm really trying to say with this is that doing something and starting something is always better than doing nothing.

In a lot of cases, people waste time just by waiting, just by thinking, just by, you know, not doing anything but if they just started,

it would be much more productive and maybe they wouldn't miss so many opportunities.

Even if your decision was not good, at least you have the experience, at least you have that data and you can learn from it.

I know that as a society, we try to avoid failure at all costs.

We don't like the idea of failure, but failure is a better teacher than success.

That's why some people say fail faster because failure gives you so much data.

So the best thing you can do is to make a decision and then adapt to it.

Allocate a specific time frame to make a decision and then just step away.

And once the decision is made, you will have this feeling of completion and you won't have the need to return to it later.

Let's say you need to make a decision.

Just give yourself one week.

And once that one week is over, don't return to it.

Don't think about it anymore.

Just move on.

If the decision that you're making is more important, let's say it's something that will affect your life in a big way,

you can give yourself a couple of months.

But don't overcomplicate the process.

Don't give yourself too much time because ultimately it's going to be a waste.

And don't think that by collecting a lot of data and constantly researching something, you will make better decisions.

In a lot of cases, it just overcomplicates the process.

When you have too much information at hand, instead of being useful, sometimes it leads to analysis paralysis.

It's not about how much time you give to yourself.

It's about reaching a certain conclusion and then not returning to it.

By setting that kind of limitations, you will regain control over your mind and you will also get mental clarity.

Remember, thinking about something for a very long time doesn't lead to better decisions or better outcomes.

Calm your mind.

If your mind is racing and you don't know what to do about it,

the best thing you can do is to do something that calms your mind.

I know that we're all different and something that calms me down might not necessarily bring you a peace of mind.

But I'm going to share my personal favorites.

Things that I personally recommend would be stuff like meditation, journaling, or physical activity.

My number one solution for overthinking is journaling.

I love journaling so much.

I've been journaling since 2020 and I can't stop.

I believe that journaling is one of the most powerful techniques to stop your racing mind from overthinking.

So I know that there are a lot of techniques that you can use when it comes to journaling,

but my personal favorite would be brain dumping.

If you don't know what brain dumping means, it basically means writing everything down without filters.

It means writing every single thought you have in your mind and not thinking about it too much.

You don't need to reread it, you don't need to think about it deeply,

you just need to get everything out on paper and then forget about it.

These entries are just for you, no one will ever see them and they will help you to process your emotions and thoughts.

I personally feel extremely relieved once I dump all my thoughts into my journaling app.

It's generally my number one strategy when it comes to overthinking and it always helps me.

When it comes to brain dumping, if the problem you're dealing with is on a simpler side, then a couple of sessions might be enough.

But if you're dealing with something more serious that really bothers you, you might need more time.

What I tend to do is I try to reach the end of thought.

I write about the problem so many times that by the end of the session, I feel bored of it.

I feel tired of talking about it.

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The funny thing is that once you talk about the problem too many times, once you write everything you know about it,

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it will get boring and tiring to talk about it again and your thoughts will disappear on their own.

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Once you bore all of those thoughts on paper, it almost feels like your brain doesn't need to process them anymore

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and you will get the peace of mind that you deserve.

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Let me know in the comment section

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if you're interested in the topic of journaling because over the years I've accumulated a lot of techniques that I can share.

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Another thing that I recommend when you're going down the overthinking spiral is physical activity.

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However, when I'm talking about physical activity, I'm not talking about excessive workout.

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I'm not talking about cardio.

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I'm talking about something slower, something calmer, something like yoga.

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Moving your body around can help you to get out of your head.

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Yoga is great, but you can also try just going out and taking a 30 -minute walk.

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I feel like walking outside

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or spending more time in nature always helps me to get out of my head and calm my mind.

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An important side note, if you're going outside to take a walk, please don't take your headphones with you.

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Just listen to your environment and don't distract yourself with content.

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Last but not least, meditation is a brilliant way to get rid of your repetitive thoughts.

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I'm not going to talk about why meditation is useful and good for you, because you probably already know that meditation has a lot of benefits,

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both for your physical and mental health.

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I've been meditating on and off for years.

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And I can definitely say that if you're consistent, meditation is very beneficial.

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Despite struggling with consistency when it comes to meditation, when I do it regularly, I can almost tell that I'm more aware of my thoughts.

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And to some degree, being aware of your thoughts almost solves half of the problem when it comes to overthinking.

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So if you have never tried meditation, I think you should definitely try it because it helps a lot.

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Productive distractions.

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Sometimes the best way to end the vicious cycle of overthinking is to distract yourself with something.

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But I'm not talking about distractions like scrolling on TikTok or Instagram.

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I'm not talking about binge watching Netflix.

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I'm talking about productive distractions that feel meaningful and also bring you joy.

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The reason why I don't recommend watching Netflix

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and drown yourself in cheap entertainment is because I don't want you to escape from your thoughts.

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I want you to just distract yourself with something more productive.

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Because when I distract myself with cheap dopamine, like TikTok or Instagram, I tend to feel really bad afterwards.

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Yes, things like Netflix or TikTok, they are distractions as well.

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But they are more like escaping from yourself, escaping from your mind.

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I think your distractions should be productive and meaningful.

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And I'm not talking about productive in terms of checking boxes off.

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I'm not talking about that kind of productivity.

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I mean that it has to feel meaningful and it has to bring you some kind of joy.

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You know, it's something that you do and then you feel really good afterwards.

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Maybe it's socializing with your friends, maybe it's spending time with your family, maybe it's watching your favorite movie.

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One of the most important things that I can suggest is to not silence your thoughts and escape from them.

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by indulging in cheap dopamine.

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It's better to process your negative emotions and feelings sooner than later.

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By drowning yourself in dopaminergic activities, you will only prolong your misery.

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It's okay to do something else to distract yourself from overthinking, but it's not okay to use escapism to do that.

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I think picking up a hobby and doing something

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that you used to enjoy in the past is one of the best solutions to overthinking.

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Maybe you can do something that you really like to do as a kid.

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Maybe you can draw, maybe you can paint.

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If you like cooking, you can try that.

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You should do something that really brings you joy.

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I'm pretty sure that would be a lovely experience.

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Just do something that will pull you out of this overthinking cycle.

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Sometimes the best solution to your problem might be to distract yourself and to do something else instead of fixating on it.

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Our brain always process information in the background.

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So even if you think that when you do something else nothing happens,

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maybe your brain is working on the solution and it will come to you pretty soon.

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Because I'm pretty sure you had those moments in your life when solutions came to you at the most unexpected times.

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By productively distracting yourself, at least you're doing something that you enjoy instead of wasting time on overthinking.

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Just do it mindset.

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If nothing works, sometimes the only solution is to just do the thing.

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I know that this quote is very cliche and a lot of people use it, I would say even overuse it,

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but it's so commonly used because it works.

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Sometimes ignoring the thoughts and just doing the things is the best solution.

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As I previously mentioned, taking any step is better than doing nothing.

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It's better than to stay static.

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When I was overthinking everything about this channel, at some point I got really tired and I just decided that I'm gonna start no matter what.

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Even if it's not perfect, even if I understand certain things, I will just start making and uploading videos.

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I think a lot of people wait for this magical moment

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when they will have all the answers and all of their problems will be solved.

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However, it rarely happens.

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Chances are that if you're an overthinker, you're also a perfectionist.

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And waiting for the perfect moment might seem like a logical solution, but unfortunately it's not.

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It's better to start right now, even if what you're doing is far from perfect, but at least you're not wasting your time.

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In fact, now that I'm making my fifth YouTube video, I can see that most of the things that I was worried about were quite irrelevant.

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My experience as a content creator was the reason why I had so many questions, but most of these problems were solved in the process.

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Don't waste your precious time worrying about something that's not even important.

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Please remember that watching YouTube videos will not change your life

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and in order to change it you have to implement the steps that I'm talking about.

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So let's revise some of the actionable steps you can take.

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Recognize that problem -solving and overthinking are not the same things.

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Set timeframes when making decisions.

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Distract yourself with meaningful activities such as hobbies.

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Just do it because overthinking is pointless unless you take action.

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I hope this video was helpful.

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Thank you so much for subscribing, liking and commenting.

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I really appreciate your support.

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I will see you in the next one.

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Vocabulary and speaking notes for this lesson

This speaking lesson is built on the video “How to stop overthinking?”. This video has 13 sentences and 2430 words to shadow. The speech runs for 13:13. The speaker talks fast, about 184 words per minute, so expect linked and reduced sounds. 85% of the words are among the 3,000 most common in English; the rest is worth studying before you start. 4 of its 13 sentences are questions, so it is good practice for question intonation and short answers.

Key vocabulary in this video

15 words from the video worth learning, with pronunciation and meaning:

Word	Pronunciation	Meaning
solve verb	/sɒlv/	To find an answer or solution to a problem or question; to work out.
distract verb	/dɪˈstɹækt/	To divert the attention of.
productive adjective	/pɹəˈdʌk.tɪv/	Capable of producing something, especially in abundance; fertile.
meditation noun	/mɛdɪˈteɪʃn̩/	A devotional exercise of, or leading to, contemplation.
distraction noun	/dɪsˈtɹæk.ʃən/	Something that distracts.
technique noun	/tɛkˈniːk/	The practical aspects of a given art, occupation etc.; formal requirements.
meaningful adjective	/ˈmiː.nɪŋ.fl̩/	Having meaning, significant.
dump verb	/dʌmp/	To release, especially in large quantities and chaotic manner.
adapt verb	/əˈdæpt/	To make suitable; to make to correspond; to fit or suit.
vicious adjective	/ˈvɪʃəs/	Violent, destructive and cruel.
afterwards adverb	/ˈæf.tɚ.wɚdz/	At a later or succeeding time; after that;
rarely adverb	/ˈɹɛəɹli/	Not occurring at a regular interval; seldom; not often.
outcome noun	/ˈaʊtkʌm/	That which is produced or occurs as a result of an event or process.
yoga noun	/ˈjoʊ.ɡə/	Any of several Hindu or Buddhist disciplines aimed at training the consciousness for a state of perfect spiritual insight and tranquillity; especially a system…
emotion noun	/ɪˈməʊ.ʃən/	A person's internal state of being and involuntary physiological response to an object or a situation, based on or tied to physical state and sensory data.

Phrasal verbs you will hear

Word	Meaning
get out of verb	To leave, exit or escape from; to become free of.
go down verb	To descend; to move from a higher place to a lower one.
go out verb	To leave, especially a building.
pick up verb	To lift; to grasp and raise.

Grammar in this video

The structures the speaker uses most, with the exact words from the video:

Structure	In the video
Present perfect continuous have/has been + -ing — an action that started earlier and is still going on	I've been journaling · I've been meditating
Conditional sentences if + clause, will/would + verb — a condition and its result	if I understand certain things, I will just
Present perfect have/has + past participle — a past action that still matters now	have wasted · I've accumulated · have never tried
Passive voice be + past participle — the focus is on what happens, not who does it	is made · will be solved · were solved

Pronunciation to watch

The speaker uses 59 contractions and reduced forms, such as I'm, don't, you're. Say them the short way, as you hear them.

The “sh” and “zh” sounds: meditation /mɛdɪˈteɪʃn̩/, distraction /dɪsˈtɹæk.ʃən/, vicious /ˈvɪʃəs/, emotion /ɪˈməʊ.ʃən/, conclusion /kənˈkluːʒən/
Long words — get the stress right: necessarily /ˌnɛs.əˈsɛɹ.ə.li/, unexpected /ʌnɪkˈspɛktɪd/, productivity /ˌpɹɒdʌkˈtɪvəti/, beneficial /ˌbɛn.ɪˈfɪʃ.əl/, consistency /kənˈsɪs.tən.si/

How to practise with this video

Listen to the whole video once without speaking and note the words you do not know.
Start at 0.75× speed, shadow it sentence by sentence, then go back to normal speed once it feels easy.
Record yourself and compare with the original, paying attention to words like solve, distract, productive.

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 →

Shadowing Practice: How to stop overthinking? - Learn English Speaking with Video

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