Shadowing Practice: My ONE comment changed EVERYTHING!... - Learn English Speaking with Video

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BOOM!

BOOM! So!

Um, I, uh, take it you all liked the video?

Uh, I mean, thank you, obviously, I really am glad that you liked it, of course.

It just, it's just, well, just how

and why- Perhaps I should just get along with the main

point of this video rather than have my 15th freakout over the past week.

This is more of a side tangent in relation to what I said in my reintroduction.

When I mentioned that most of you had come to meet me for an unnecessary reason, and that reason being a little,

but not so little, TV head named Minbit.

If you don't know who that is, to which I'd be surprised, simply put, Minbit is another amazing animator,

and while they've been here for a little bit longer, I'd still say that they fit among the new group of animators to have came to YouTube.

You most likely will know them for their animated shorts, of which I am also very fond of them, while there's one short from them that I watched just only a couple minutes after it was posted.

And I suppose I resonated a bit with it, because it emphasized a certain musical habit that I'm very much guilty of.

So I left a comment to express that relatability, and uh...

That was a mistake.

I mean, I know it's one of the main ways for you to show your favorite creators

that you watched their posts and actually enjoyed it so much that you left your opinion about it, but for me, most of the time, it's because I either don't know what to say,

or I say way too much.

Ironic, isn't it?

Funny how I'm not one for talking much, but I am such a yapper that whenever I do,

I overemphasize what I'm saying and just can never seem to shut up.

It's also because on the rare occasions that I do leave comments

that I am starting to be spotted out in the wild, so to say.

But then I shouldn't be surprised by that when most of us probably watch a good amount of the same people.

And just like right now, I'm doing it again, yapping and going on a tangent.

Back to Minbit.

As I said, I left a comment and apparently what I had said was such a relatable artist struggle

that it didn't take long before it became the top comment on that short.

Like it hadn't even been an hour and already a few hundred people had liked it.

It got so many replies of people saying same or literally me for real, whatever.

Oh, but wait, it gets even better.

Apparently it was such a relatable art struggle and

so many people had liked it that they literally came to my channel through

that comment and subscribed to me with barely any context of who I am or what I do.

They just saw a funny comment and said, I like this guy, for some reason.

And so, that's how I broke out of 7K Purgatory.

This was the most undeserved milestone I reached by far.

I mean, I would say that about all that I've gained, especially with just shy sheets and beats,

but at the very least with that I actually made something instead of sharing a few choice of words that people found.. funny?

I guess?

You know, I honestly wonder if people have still been finding me from that comment.

I haven't checked the video out in a long while, so I haven't seen what has happened to- Ow!

Ah, my heart!

Ah!

Again, I'm grateful.

Really.

I just...

Well, I kinda also feel guilty because it wasn't my video that caused that to happen.

It kinda feels like I sorta stole from Minbit. So...

Sorry that I.. kinda robbed you.. in a way.

I mean, I don't think I stole them in the sense that they unsubscribed from them and went to me, but I just feel the attention I gained from that was purely undeserved.

But um, yeah, and I guess now I can say thank you for 9,000...

I guess.

I really do appreciate how the animation community is supporting each other right now.

Again, especially with the influx of storytime animators.

And even those who aren't specifically doing storytime.

I just find it really lovely that everyone's now taking the opportunity to, well, pursue that dream that most of us had when we were little, watching our inspirations and all.

As I was reading through the comments of the last post, I noticed that a few of you had mentioned that I also wanted to make a video like this, especially with the streak that's going on right now,

but I had never found the motivation before, and I'm scared I'll be too late once I actually do.

And that's fair, because I too worried

that I wasn't gonna have enough time to catch up with

everyone else once I finally decided on on how I wanted to make my video.

But I say you should do it anyways.

It doesn't matter your skill level or whether or not you have all the fancy software or equipment, and even if you make it a while after the train has stopped,

I still think you benefit from putting in the effort at all.

A few things that helped me when making my introduction video, well, or rather with everything that I make, is keeping in mind the desired point that I want to reach.

Having that strong vision, but also just remembering the excitement and pure joy that I get from seeing my inspirations.

And besides, there's no shame in at least trying.

So long as you hold on to that, everything else just comes naturally.

At least for me, anyway.

So, yeah, to anyone else who wants to pursue animation or just is finding it hard to find motivation in anything, I know it sounds cliche, but...

J-just.. just go for it.

Yeah, just.. just go for it and do your best.

Trust me, I think it all will work out.

Y-you got this.

Yeah.

Also, someone said that I was wife material, apparently.

I don't really understand what you mean by that.

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316 sentences

Vocabulary and speaking notes for this lesson

This B2 speaking lesson is built on the video “My ONE comment changed EVERYTHING!..”. The speaker keeps coming back to these words: comment, boom, Minbit, liked. This video has 84 sentences and 1061 words to shadow. The speech runs for 5:51. The speaker talks fast, about 181 words per minute, so expect linked and reduced sounds. 82% of the words are among the 3,000 most common in English; the rest is worth studying before you start.

Key vocabulary in this video

The 15 most advanced words in the video, with pronunciation and meaning:

Word	Pronunciation	Meaning
animator noun	/ˈænɪˌmeɪtə(ɹ)/	One who creates an animation or cartoon; a cartoonist.
relatable adjective	[ɹɪˈleɪ.tə.bɫ̩]	Able to be related to something else; connected with.
storytime noun		The time at which a story is told.
tangent noun	/ˈtæn.d͡ʒənt/	A straight line touching a curve at a single point without crossing it there.
undeserved adjective		Not deserved, earned or merited; unjustifiable or unfair.
animation noun	/ˌæn.ɪˈmeɪ.ʃən/	The act of animating, or giving life or spirit.
animate adjective	/ˈæn.ə.mət/	That lives.
cliché noun	/kliˈʃeɪ/	Something, most often a phrase or expression, that is overused or used outside its original context, so that its original impact and meaning are lost. A trite…
overemphasize verb		To place too much emphasis on; to overstate the importance of.
reintroduction noun		The act of introducing something again.
relatability noun		The quality of being relatable.
resonate verb	/ˈɹɛz.əˌneɪt/	To vibrate or sound, especially in response to another vibration.
unsubscribe verb		To cancel a subscription, especially to an online service.
yapper noun	/ˈjæp.ɚ/	One who yaps.
influx noun	/ˈɪnˌflʌks/	A flow inward or into something; a coming in.

Phrasal verbs you will hear

Word	Pronunciation	Meaning
read through verb		To thoroughly read something to check or proofread it.
shut up	/ʃʌt ʌp/	Stop talking (usually in the form of making annoying, irrelevant, or false comments, during a period of peace and quiet, or when one is not allowed to talk)…
work out verb	/ˌwɝk ˈaʊt/	To calculate.

Grammar in this video

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

Structure	In the video
Present perfect have/has + past participle — a past action that still matters now	they've been · I've gained · haven't checked
Passive voice be + past participle — the focus is on what happens, not who does it	was posted · be spotted

Pronunciation to watch

The speaker uses 30 contractions and reduced forms, such as I'm, don't, kinda. Say them the short way, as you hear them.

The “sh” and “zh” sounds: animation /ˌæn.ɪˈmeɪ.ʃən/, cliché /kliˈʃeɪ/
Long words — get the stress right: animator /ˈænɪˌmeɪtə(ɹ)/, animation /ˌæn.ɪˈmeɪ.ʃən/, unnecessary /ʌnˈnɛs.əˌsɛɹ.i/

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 animator, relatable, storytime.

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: My ONE comment changed EVERYTHING!... - Learn English Speaking with Video

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