Shadowing Practice: INTERMEDIATE ENGLISH STORY 📝Setting Goals 📝 B2 | Level 4 - Level 5 | BRITISH ENGLISH WITH SUBTITLES - Learn English Speaking with Video

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Hello and welcome to Lovely English Stories.
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Thank you for stopping by.
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This story is written for Upper Intermediate English learners.
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Ready?
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Let's get started.
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B2 English Story Setting Goals Tom looked out of his window.
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He was incredibly lucky.
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His flat overlooked the city, the city he now called home.
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He had moved prior to the pandemic and was finding it difficult to settle into his new home.
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He had previously worked in Newcastle and took a promotion which meant moving hundreds of miles across the country.
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He was glad of it and relished the opportunity to have a new adventure,
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but that didn't mean that it didn't come without its challenges.
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Shortly after starting his new position,
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the whole company moved from office-based to remote working before he got a chance to really get to know his team.
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The local football club had stopped practising and the gym he had signed up for had closed down.
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His social life went from slowly growing to non-existent.
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He spent most of his time talking to his plants and working away on his laptop.
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Tom's only consolation was that he knew he wasn't the only one.
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He knew there were many other people in the exact same situation as him.
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At least he was lucky to have the internet and his phone so he could communicate with people.
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Even though the world was pretty much locked down He tried to set himself some goals And for the most part,
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he completed them He was starting to get a little chubby Due to sitting around the flat
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So he decided to train up to be able to run a 10k race By the end of the year,
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he could comfortably run 10k in under one hour.
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He also decided to get better at cooking.
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He did so by ordering a subscription service food box from a local farm.
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All the ingredients and recipe cards were delivered to him each week,
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which meant he ate better meals and enjoyed more variety in his diet.
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He also decided to learn a new skill.
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He decided he wanted to learn how to edit his photographs properly.
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So he took an online course and became quite good at it.
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The only goal he didn't really complete was making new friends.
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Due to the rules and moving to a new city, he struggled to meet a lot of people.
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He did go out for a few picnics with his workmates, but that was about it.
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He knew that was something he would have to work on for the following year.
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Tom was never one for New Year's resolutions.
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He always found them to be rather pointless.
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He would always say, you shouldn't wait until the New Year to start something new.
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Just do it now.
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If Tom wanted to do something, he would usually give it a go.
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But after the last year of ups and downs,
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he decided to set himself some really clear goals to work towards and help him integrate into his new home.
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Tom preferred to use the word goal rather than resolution.
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For him, there was a clear distinction between the two.
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A goal was something with a clear end point and a time frame.
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For example, he had to read 20 books in the next year.
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Whereas a resolution to Tom was something that was more lenient and could be changed at the drop of a hat.
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He preferred to go with a goal.
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He liked to make clear, smart goals, meaning they were specific, measurable, achievable, realistic and time-bound.
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He didn't have any plans for New Year's Eve, as he had returned to his new home after Christmas and didn't know anyone.
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He bought his favourite snacks and drinks and made himself a comfortable cocoon on his sofa.
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He planned to spend the night video-calling friends,
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watching TV, reading some of the books he got for Christmas and setting some smart goals for the year ahead.
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He chuckled to himself, what a fun individual I've come to be.
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He was always very sarcastic.
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Again, knowing that all his friends back home were in the same situation as him came as some consolation.
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He wasn't the only one sitting at home alone, unable to go out, but at least it made him relax and focus on the future.
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He opened his new, crisp diary for the following year.
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He was never really one to keep a diary, but the last year had changed that.
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Now he liked to document his days, no matter how boring they may have been.
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He liked to look back and remember even the most dismal of days.
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He started to write in his diary using the lovely new pen he was gifted for Christmas.
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Here we are, another year over.
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This year I am in a very different place.
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I have my own flat, living alone and in a new city.
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It's been a tough one.
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There have been challenges, but then again the last year or so has been challenging for everyone.
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Luckily, none of my family or friends have been ill, and there are even a few additions to my circle.
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Gina and Carl had a baby girl, and Lewis and Irene had a boy.
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I'm glad I took the risk and made the move, no matter how lonely I've been at times.
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At least I know on the other end of the blower I've got a multitude of people I can call
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and talk to, not to mention the amount of TV I've watched.
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Thank goodness for Netflix!
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The new job is going well.
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The team seemed cool, if a little reserved, but hopefully, once we are back in the office a few days a week,
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I can get to know them a bit better.
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I enjoy what I do, and I've made it through my probation, so they must think I'm decent.
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I joined the local football five-a-side team, but we had to stop practising after the first meet-up because of the new rules.
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I was gutted, as the team seemed like a good laugh.
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Hopefully we can start playing again soon.
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The same happened with the gym, so I didn't really get to meet anyone other than the people at the reception.
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A plus that's come out of all this is it's forced me to get out of the house and go running, something we all know I previously hated with a passion.
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Now it's made easier by listening to podcasts and trying to beat my personal best time.
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I've decided to make myself accountable for the next year and
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so I'm going to write here some goals for the next
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12 months I just hope this time next year I'm not sitting in the same place
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and I can get out and about with my mates So,
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here we go 1.
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Sign up for the Easter 10k race and complete in under 55 minutes.
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2. Read at least one book per month.
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Genre doesn't matter.
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3. Try one new recipe a month and make from scratch.
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Can include desserts.
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4. Have a two-week summer holiday.
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Doesn't matter where.
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Just need a proper holiday.
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5. Save £150 a month and put into a savings account.
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I think that's enough to be getting on with.
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Let's see where I am this time next year.
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Do you have any goals or resolutions for the year ahead?
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Tell us in the comments below.
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We hope you enjoyed this lovely English story.
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Thank you for stopping by.
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And don't forget to like, subscribe and share.
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See you soon!

About This Lesson

In this lesson, you will practice your English listening and speaking skills through an engaging story focused on setting goals. The content is designed for upper-intermediate learners (B2 level), helping you grasp important themes while enhancing your vocabulary and understanding of everyday British English. As you follow Tom's journey of self-improvement during challenging times, you'll not only enjoy the narrative but also learn how to articulate your own goals effectively.

Key Vocabulary & Phrases

  • Overlook - to have a view from above.
  • Promotion - a move to a higher position or rank.
  • Consolation - comfort received after a loss or disappointment.
  • 10k race - a running event covering 10 kilometres.
  • Online course - a program of study conducted over the internet.
  • SMART goals - Specific, Measurable, Achievable, Realistic, Time-bound objectives.
  • Social life - the part of a person's life involved in social interactions.
  • Ups and downs - the variations in fortune, experiences of highs and lows.

Practice Tips

To make the most of this video, consider using the shadowing technique as you follow along. With the shadowing app, you can listen to Tom’s story, pause the video, and repeat sections out loud to improve your pronunciation and fluency. Adjust the playback speed if needed; for instance, slowing it down can help you catch more details. Try to imitate not only the words but also the rhythm and intonation of Tom's speech. As you practice, focus on speaking clearly and confidently, which are essential skills for IELTS speaking practice. Use this method regularly, especially with videos that resonate with your interests, such as those teaching you how to learn English with YouTube. This approach can lead to significant improvements in your overall speaking abilities.

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.