Shadowing Practice: Public Speaking For Beginners - Learn English Speaking with Video

Creating lesson...
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In this video, I'll share public speaking tips for beginners.
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So if you're just getting started in your stand-up speaking experience, this video is for you.
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So let's unpack the details.
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Hello there and welcome to this channel, Communication Coach.
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If you're never tuned in yet, this channel is here to help rising leaders increase your personal impact
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so you can lead the people around you with more excellence and today we're talking about communication skills specifically.
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If you haven't had a lot of experience doing stand-up speaking, I'm going to give you some do's and some don'ts that'll help move you in the right direction.
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And as we talk about these do's and don'ts, I want you to pick out which ones you think would help you the most,
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and feel free at any point to comment in that section below the video.
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So I said do's and don'ts, we're actually going to start with the don'ts and then give you the do version of it.
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So that's the way we'll organize it.
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So the first pair goes like this.
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Don't ramble and get long-winded.
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Anytime a speaker is disorganized and weaves all around, it's very hard to follow what he or she is talking about.
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And instead, what you want to do is give a nice organized and concise message.
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That means you have to take the time beforehand when you're preparing to create a nice introduction, body, and conclusion.
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Make sure you have clear main points and there's a transition statement between each main point,
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your audience is really going to appreciate an orderly presentation of your ideas
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and it's much more likely that they'll remember what you said
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and really that's the whole point of speaking to them in the first place.
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The next don't is don't look with your eyes in the wrong places.
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You want to not look over people's heads
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or not look at the floor and not stare at the ceiling or scan around like that,
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what you want to do is look directly into a person's eye long enough to finish a thought
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and then move on and look directly into the next person's eyes long enough to finish a thought.
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One public speaking teacher told me, one thought, one look.
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In other words, about a sentence or a half a sentence and then move on to the next person.
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Now this is very difficult to do if you're not used to it.
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It can feel very awkward looking right into someone's eyes, but you have to gear up for this because that's what audiences want.
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We want people to connect with us.
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If you're not looking into our eyes and making us feel like we're part of this, then you're not going to have much of an impact.
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The next thing you want to do is don't, rather, this is a don't, don't clutter up all your notes with too many details.
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A lot of times we're tempted to jam our notes
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or our PowerPoints with everything we want to but the result is when we're nervous in the moment,
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we end up just locked into our notes and looking down the whole time and reading and sounding really stiff, really wooden, and you're not going to again connect with people.
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So what you want to do instead is pare down your notes
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so that you can just have a conversational style with your audience.
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And again, as you're practicing, you have to whittle down those notes so that all you have is like talking points, like a little grocery list of items that you're going to talk about,
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and it almost forces you or at least frees you to connect with people,
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to look up, and to have a nice normal conversation with them and your natural personality.
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The next don't is you don't want to load up your slide with all complicated animations and text.
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And one of the reasons is you don't want to stare at it and read from it.
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The other reason is that it's very hard to follow what's going on if your slides are jam-packed with detail.
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What you want to do instead is make sure your slides nice
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and clear and simple and help you make whatever point you're making in that particular moment.
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A rule of thumb that I like to use is
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if you're spending more than about two
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or three minutes on each PowerPoint slide then you're probably wasting your time
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and I don't recommend using more than a couple of slides per presentation anyway
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if you're a beginner because people tend to over rely on the slides
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and load up each single slide with way too much.
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The next don't is don't Don't fidget.
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Don't fidget with your hands.
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Don't fidget with your feet.
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Don't pace back and forth aimlessly because you're nervous.
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What you want to do instead is have nice confident posture where you stand in one place for a little while.
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And then if you want to move with a purpose, move, stand another place for a while, and then share another part of your message.
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Move for the purpose, stand still, share some of your message.
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Don't just pace, have nice confident posture.
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Same thing with your hands.
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You want to use gestures and emphasize your ideas with your hands.
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You don't want to fidget and put them in your pockets
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or play with a pen or do anything else weird or distracting like that.
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That's a big part of how you come across non-verbally
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and I recommend that when you're practicing you work on this as well.
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And the last don't and do is how you use your voice.
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What you don't want to do is speak too softly, use a lot of fillers like um and ah and so.
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What you want to do is have a confident voice where
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you speak loud like to the back of the the room with a nice clear volume.
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Aim for the back of the room because think about it.
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You have to reach those people.
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The other thing you want to do is emphasize your key words with the sound of your voice
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and also pause after you share a key idea or a key thought.
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Pause for a minute silently.
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Don't fill it up with an um or an ah.
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The pause is much more effective.
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So here are some do's and don'ts, some tips for beginners.
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Again, as I mentioned, where do you see yourself in here?
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Which one do you think would help you the most in this list?
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I would love to hear your comments in that section below.
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So thanks, God bless, and I will see you in the next video.
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Why Practice Public Speaking with This Video?

Whether you’re prepping for IELTS speaking practice or just want to boost your confidence in meetings, this video is a goldmine for english speaking practice. It breaks down real-world communication skills—like organizing ideas and connecting with an audience—using simple, relatable language. Plus, the conversational tone makes it perfect for shadow speech practice: you can mimic the speaker’s pace, pauses, and emphasis to sound more natural. By focusing on these do’s and don’ts, you’ll not only improve your public speaking but also build foundational English skills that matter in everyday interactions.

Grammar & Expressions in Context

The video uses practical structures that English learners can apply immediately. For example, “If you’re spending more than… then you’re probably wasting your time” is a conditional sentence that helps explain cause and effect—great for giving advice. Another key phrase is “rather, this is a don’t,” which shifts focus smoothly, useful for organizing thoughts in speeches or debates. The speaker also uses “a rule of thumb” to introduce a general guideline, a common idiom that adds fluency. Finally, “it almost forces you or at least frees you” uses parallel structure to emphasize benefits, a technique that makes your speech more persuasive. These phrases aren’t just for public speaking—they’ll elevate your everyday English too.

Common Pronunciation Traps

New speakers often stumble over words like “concise” (pronounced /kənˈsaɪs/, not /kɒnˈsaɪz/) and “whittle” (/ˈwɪtl/, not /ˈhwɪtl/). The video also stresses the importance of pausing between “one thought, one look”—a rhythm that’s easy to rush. Practice saying “transition statement” slowly, making sure the “t” in “transition” is clear, not silent. For improve english pronunciation, mimic the speaker’s emphasis on words like “connect” and “impact”—stressing the first syllable makes your speech more engaging. Shadowing the dialogue (repeating phrases aloud as you watch) will help you master these nuances and sound more confident.

Key Takeaways for Beginners

  • Organize your speech into intro, body, and conclusion—use clear transitions to keep your audience focused.
  • Make eye contact: “one thought, one look” helps build connection (even if it feels awkward at first).
  • Pare down notes to talking points—this frees you to speak conversationally and show your personality.
  • Keep slides simple: avoid clutter and animations; use them as visual aids, not crutches.

Ready to start? Grab a notebook, jot down your talking points, and try practicing with the video. Remember, learn english with youtube isn’t just about watching—it’s about doing. The more you apply these tips, the more natural your English will sound, both on stage and off.

Grammar in this video

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

StructureIn the video
Present continuous am/is/are + -ing — something happening right now or around nowyou're just getting · we're talking · is talking
Future with “going to” be going to + verb — a plan or something you can see comingI'm going to give · we're actually going to start · is really going to appreciate
Future with “will” will + verb — a decision, promise or predictionI'll share · that'll help · we'll organize
Obligation: must / have to / need to saying that something is necessaryhave to take · have to gear · have to whittle

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 →