Shadowing Practice: [Motivation] Trust Yourself, You Deserve It I Selena Gomez Speech - Learn English Speaking with Video

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52 sentences
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1
There's so much pressure.
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You gotta be sexy, you gotta be cute, you gotta be nice, you gotta be all these things.
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You all have pressure that you have to deal with every day.
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I'm sure with school, with work, with friends, with parents, with family.
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They tell me what to wear, how to look, what I should say, how I should be.
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Until recently, I had given in to that pressure.
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I lost sight of who I was.
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I listened to opinions of people.
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and I tried to change who I am because I thought the others would accept me for it.
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And I realized I don't know how to be anything but myself.
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My mom had me when she was 16, and I'm from Grand Prairie,
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Texas, and she worked four jobs and completely dedicated her life into making mine better.
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So to me, she is the definition of a strong woman.
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And I love her so much because she's taught me those values so much.
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I have been acting my entire life.
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And I have known since I was first on Barney.
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You know that purple dinosaur that I hung out with?
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He's great.
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And when I was 11, I had a casting director tell me that I wasn't strong enough to carry my own show.
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I'm sure all of you have been told
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that you don't have what it takes and
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that you may not be good enough
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and you don't have enough people supporting you
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and you're being told all of these things when deep down it's all you want to do.
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You want to be a part of something great.
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You want to make something great.
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And it does more than knock the wind out of you, it crushes you when people try to tell you
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that you're not good enough and it almost did for me
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but there was my mom next to me stronger than ever
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and she said the most important thing is to always trust in myself
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if I have if I'm doing something
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because I love it I should do it because I love it and I believe I can do it.
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She told me and she taught me to turn the other cheek
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and let the credits or like the critics be critics and let us just trust ourselves.
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Two years later I got my own show
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and the first thought the first thought wasn't oh man
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that girl when I was 11 said I wouldn't carry my own show
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and I did I mean I thought about that for a little bit
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but I thought about my mom said my mom was like you have to trust yourself
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and i realized if i didn't believe
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that i could do it i wouldn't be able to be
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here please stay true to yourself please just remain who you are
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and know that we have each other's back i'd be lying
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if i said that i've never tried to make myself better by giving in
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because i have but i've learned from my actions
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and for all the things i've done i'm proudest of
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that i've learned from my mistakes
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so i just want to say i hope i can inspire each
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and every one of you to just trust yourselves and to love and to be loved.
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This is such a beautiful thing you're doing.
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Be proud of yourselves.
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This is great.

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What You'll Learn from This Speech

This video is a goldmine for building confident speaking skills—perfect for IELTS speaking practice or everyday conversations. You’ll learn to express personal stories with emotion, a key skill for connecting with listeners. Plus, it teaches you to articulate resilience, a common theme in both casual chats and formal exams. And don’t miss how Selena balances vulnerability with strength—this balance makes your speech relatable and memorable.

Listen For These Sounds

Pay attention to connected speech in phrases like “gotta be” (instead of “got to be”) and “knock the wind out of you” (where “the” softens to “thuh”). You’ll also hear reductions like “I’m sure” (sounding like “I’m shur”) and “it’s all you want to do” (where “it’s all” links smoothly). These small sound changes are what make native speech flow—master them, and your English will sound more natural.

Say It Like a Native: Rhythm and Stress

To mirror Selena’s tone, focus on stress and rhythm. She emphasizes words like “trust,” “love,” and “strong” to highlight her message—copy this to make your speech impactful. Notice how she pauses before key points, like “Until recently, I had given in to that pressure”—this pause builds tension and draws listeners in. Try the shadowing technique here: play a short clip, pause, and repeat it immediately, matching her pace and emotion. A good shadowing site can help you practice this daily, but even repeating the video aloud will boost your pronunciation and fluency. Remember, the goal isn’t to mimic her voice—it’s to adopt the natural rhythm that makes English sound alive.

Whether you’re working on improve english pronunciation or prepping for a big speaking test, this speech is a powerful tool. It reminds us that great communication comes from authenticity—and with practice, you’ll not only speak better English but also connect deeper with others.

Grammar in this video

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

StructureIn the video
Present perfect have/has + past participle — a past action that still matters nowhave known · have been told · i've never tried
Passive voice be + past participle — the focus is on what happens, not who does ithave been told · being told · be loved

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 →