Shadowing Practice: How to Think in English โ Stop Translating in Your Head | Learning English Podcast ๐ง - Learn English Speaking with Video
Creating lesson...
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English Easy Practice Let me describe something.
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Someone asks you a question in English.
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You know the answer in your language.
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So you translate it in your head, word by word.
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By the time you finish, the moment is gone. And you feel slow.
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You feel behind.
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You feel like your English is not good enough. But here's the truth.
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It's not your English that's slowing you down.
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It's the translation, the extra step inside your head.
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That step is the problem.
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And today, we're going to help you remove that step forever.
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By the end of this episode, you will understand why thinking in English feels hard, and you will have four simple tools to start doing it naturally.
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This is one of the most important episodes we've made, so stay with us.
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Welcome to the English Easy Practice Podcast.
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I'm Emily.
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And I'm Mike.
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This is your podcast for real English, everyday conversations and easy, relaxed listening practice.
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Two friends, talking, learning, growing together every single episode.
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Emily, how are you today?
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I'm really good.
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A little excited, actually, because this topic, thinking in English, It's something I struggled with for a long time, and I love that we're talking about it today.
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Same.
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And I have a personal story about this that I'll share a little later.
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Oh, I can't wait to hear it.
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Welcome, everyone.
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We are so glad you're here.
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Quick favor before we start.
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If this podcast helps you, please like this episode and subscribe.
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And share it with a friend who always says, I think in my language and then translate everything into English, because today's episode will change that.
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Okay, let's talk about translation.
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Mike, you said you have a personal story about this?
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Tell us.
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Yes, so a few years ago, I was at an international work meeting.
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Everyone was speaking English.
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And my boss asked me a simple question.
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What do you think about this idea?
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Simple question.
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What did you do?
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I heard the question in English.
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Then I thought of my answer in my language.
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Then I started translating it word by word into English.
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And while I was doing all of thatโฆ What happened?
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Someone else answered.
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The conversation moved on and I sat there with my perfectly translated answer that nobody needed anymore.
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Oh no, that feeling is so painful.
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It was terrible.
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And the worst part?
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My translated answer was actually a good answer, but it came three minutes too late.
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So the problem wasn't your knowledge.
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The problem was the time the translation took.
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Exactly.
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Translation is like a detour.
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Instead of driving from A to B, B, you drive from A to C and then from C to B.
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It's the long way.
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And in conversation, there's no time for the long way.
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Right.
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Real conversation needs the direct road.
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English straight to English.
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No detour.
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So the goal is not to translate faster.
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The goal is to stop translating completely.
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That's the whole lesson.
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And it sounds impossible at first, but it's not.
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It's actually very natural, because when you were a child, you didn't translate your first language.
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You justโฆ thought in it.
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Yes, nobody taught you grammar rules first.
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You just heard words, connected them to things, and started using them.
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And you can do the same thing with English.
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Your brain already knows how to do this.
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We just need to wake that skill up again.
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So, Mike, why do we translate in the first place?
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If it's so slow, why does our brain do it?
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Good question.
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I think it's because translation feels safe.
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Safe?
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Explain.
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When we translate, we feel in control.
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We know exactly what we want to say in our language.
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So we try to carry that exact meaning across into English word by word.
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It's like carrying a full glass of water.
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You walk very slowly and carefully because you don't want to spill anything.
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Yes, great picture.
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Slow and careful.
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But real conversation doesn't wait for you to walk slowly.
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Exactly.
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And here's another problem.
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Not every word in your language has a perfect matching word in English.
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Oh, that's so true.
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Some feelings or ideas in my language, there's just no direct English word for them.
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So when you try to translate those, your brain gets stuck because the perfect word doesn't exist.
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And then we freeze.
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We stop.
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We say, I don't know how to say this in English.
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But actually, we do know.
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We just need to express the idea, not translate the exact word.
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That's the key difference.
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Translating looks for the exact word.
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Thinking in English looks for a way to express the idea.
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Like a bridge versus a tunnel.
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A tunnel goes directly underground, exact and straight.
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A bridge finds another way across the water.
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More flexible, more creative.
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Thinking in English is the bridge.
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It finds another way.
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And it gets you there much faster.
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Okay, now let's talk about how to actually do this.
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Four simple tools to start thinking in English.
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starting today.
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Four tools.
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I'm ready.
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Let's go.
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The first tool is the simplest one, and you can start it in the next five minutes.
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What is it?
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Start labeling the things around you in English, in your head, not out loud.
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Just look at something and think the English word for it.
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Like right now, I see a chair, a desk, a microphone, a coffee cup.
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Exactly.
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No translation needed.
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Just the English word directly connected to the thing you see.
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This is how babies learn language.
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They see a dog and they hear dog over and over.
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Until dog means the animal, not a word in another language another language.
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So we're doing the same thing.
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We see the chair, we think chair, not chair equals our word for chair, just chair, that thing, together.
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And slowly, English words stop being translations.
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They become direct connections to the real world.
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Like planting seeds.
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Every English word you connect directly to a thing, that's a seed.
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Over time, it grows into automatic thinking.
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I love that.
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Plant the seed, connect the word directly to the world around you.
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Start today.
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Walk around your home, label 10 things in English, in your head, that's it.
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Tool 2 is a little bigger, but still very simple.
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Tell us.
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Every day, narrate small moments of your life in English, in your head, like a quiet little voice describing what you do.
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Like, I am making coffee.
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It smells good.
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Today is cold.
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Exactly.
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Exactly.
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Simple sentences, present tense, about right now.
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What you see, what you feel, what you do.
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And the sentences don't need to be perfect.
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No. Simple is better.
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I am tired.
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This food is delicious.
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I need to go to the store.
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Easy, short, real.
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It's like having a little English radio playing inside your head all day.
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Yes, a quiet English radio.
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Nobody else hears it.
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No pressure, no judgment, just you practicing inside your own mind.
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And the more you do it, the more natural it feels.
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Until one day you realize you just thought something in English without even trying.
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That day will come, I promise.
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It came for me, and it was such a beautiful surprise.
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Tool 3 is for those moments when you're thinking in English, and suddenly you hit a word you don't know.
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This happens to everyone, even advanced speakers.
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Right.
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And most people, when they hit that unknown word, they stop.
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They go back to their language.
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They translate.
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But there's a better way.
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Yes, describe it.
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Use simple English words to explain the idea instead of finding the exact word.
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For example, imagine you forget the word umbrella.
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Instead of stopping, you say, the thing you hold when it rains to keep dry.
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Or you forget, alarm clock.
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You say, the thing that wakes me up in the morning.
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You stay in English the whole time.
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You never leave.
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You just take a small detour.
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Inside English.
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And this is actually how fluent speakers talk too.
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They describe things they forget.
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They use other words.
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They never completely stop.
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So when you hit a wall, don't go back.
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Go around.
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Stay in English.
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Don't stop.
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Don't translate.
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Describe. And the last tool.
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This one sounds small, but it is very powerful.
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What is it?
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Set yourself one tiny goal, just one English thought per hour.
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One thought?
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That really is small.
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I know, but think about it.
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One thought per hour, while you're awake, is maybe 15 or 16 English thoughts a day. That adds up quickly.
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Yes, and it works because it's not scary.
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One thought is easy.
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One thought is always possible, even on a busy or tired day.
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And once you do one thought, usually you do two, then three, because starting is always the hardest part.
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Exactly.
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Remember our first episode?
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Starting is like pushing the heavy rock.
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Once it moves, it keeps moving.
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So the goal is just to push the rock.
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One thought, one push, every hour.
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And slowly, without pressure, English thinking becomes your normal.
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Not something you do on purpose, just something you do.
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Like breathing.
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You don't think about breathing, you just breathe.
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One day, you will just think in English, without thinking about thinking in English.
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That sentence was a little confusing, but it was beautiful.
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Thank you.
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I think.
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Okay, listener.
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Let's practice right now.
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Together.
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We're going to think in English for one minute.
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Don't translate.
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Just answer in simple English.
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Ready?
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First question.
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Look around you right now.
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What do you see?
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Think of one thing.
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Just one.
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What is the English word for it?
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Good.
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Now, how do you feel right now?
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In this moment?
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Don't translate.
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Just think.
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Am I happy?
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Tired?
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Relaxed?
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Curious?
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Find one word.
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Excellent!
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And last one.
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What did you do today?
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Think of one simple sentence.
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I woke up.
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I had coffee.
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I listened to a podcast.
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Any sentence.
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Your sentence.
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You just thought in English.
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Three times without translating.
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That's it.
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That's how it starts.
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Small, simple, real.
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And every time you do it, it gets more natural. Do this every day.
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Ask yourself these three questions every morning.
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And watch what happens in one month.
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Time for our vocabulary section.
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Let's look at some important words from today.
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Detour.
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A longer path taken instead of the direct way.
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Example.
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Translation is a detour inside your brain.
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Narrate.
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To describe what is happening out loud or in your mind.
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Example.
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I narrate my morning routine in English every day.
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Label โ to give a name to something.
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Example โ I label the things around me in English.
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Flexible โ able to change and find new ways easily.
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Example โ Thinking in English makes you more flexible in conversation.
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express, to share an idea or feeling using words.
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Example, I couldn't find the word, so I expressed the idea differently.
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Let's practice.
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Emily, use detour in a sentence.
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Translation is a detour.
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It takes you the long way to your answer.
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Perfect!
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Listener, your turn.
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Pick any word from the vocabulary and make your own sentence.
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Say it right now, out loud, or write it in the comments below.
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Before we finish, your challenge for today.
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Are you ready?
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One challenge, very simple.
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Tonight, before you sleep, think of three sentences in English about your day.
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What happened?
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How did you feel?
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What did you eat?
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Don't write them.
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Don't say them out loud.
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Just think them in English in your head.
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Three sentences.
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That's your homework.
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And tomorrow, try four.
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Let's do our final recap.
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Here are the big ideas from today.
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The problem.
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Translating from your language into English is a detour.
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It makes you slow, and it sometimes gets you stuck.
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Connect English words directly to ideas, feelings, and things, not to words in your language.
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Lesson 1.
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You learned your first language without translation.
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Your brain can do the same with English.
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Don't look for the exact word.
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Find a way to express the idea.
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Stay in English.
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Tool 1.
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Label your world.
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Connect English words directly to things you see every day.
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Narrate your day in simple English sentences inside your head.
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Tool 3.
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When you forget a word, describe it in English.
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Don't stop.
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Don't translate.
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One English thought per hour.
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Small, easy, powerful.
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We want to say something before we go.
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Yes, something we really mean.
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The fact that you sometimes translate in your head, that means you're a thinker.
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You want to say things correctly.
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That's a beautiful quality.
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But now you have a new tool.
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You don't have to translate to be correct.
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You can think directly in English.
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Simply, naturally, freely.
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Give yourself permission to think in simple English.
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Simple is not wrong.
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Simple is the beginning of fluency.
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We believe in you.
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We really do.
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Question for the comments.
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What is the first English thought you had today?
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Tell us below.
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It doesn't matter how simple it is.
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We want to read it and celebrate it with you.
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If this episode helped you, please like, subscribe, and share with one friend who is always stuck in the translation trap.
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This was the English Easy Practice Podcast.
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I'm Mike.
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And I'm Emily.
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Until next time, think in English.
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Even just one thought.
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That's enough for today.
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Bye, everyone.
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Bye-bye.
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Take care.
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About This Lesson
You're practicing English with "How to Think in English โ Stop Translating in Your Head | Learning English Podcast ๐ง" using the Shadowing technique โ a method originally developed for professional interpreter training.
Focus on sounding like the speaker โ not just repeating words. With 15โ30 minutes of daily practice, you'll build real-world speaking confidence.
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 โ like a shadow following the speaker with just a 1โ2 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 โ making it one of the most effective methods for IELTS Speaking preparation and real-world English communication.