Shadowing Practice: Stop Making Excuses — Start Learning English Today | Easy English Conversation for Beginners - Learn English Speaking with Video
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Hello, everyone, and welcome back to Enjoy English Talks, where every conversation helps you learn.
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I'm Judy.
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Hello, Judy.
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Hello, everyone.
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I'm Jake.
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How are you today, Judy?
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I'm really good today.
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Thank you.
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I went for a walk this morning.
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The air was cool and fresh.
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It made me feel awake.
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And you, Jake?
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I'm okay.
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But I feel a little guilty today.
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Guilty means I feel bad about something I did or didn't do.
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Oh, no. What happened?
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Well, last week you told me to practice speaking English for five minutes every day.
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Just five minutes.
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Very simple.
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Yes, I remember.
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And did you do it?
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I did it on Monday and Tuesday.
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But then on Wednesday, I was tired after work, so I said I'll do it tomorrow.
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And on Thursday, I had to walk Max, my dog.
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And on Friday, I forgot.
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And on Saturday, I told myself, It's the weekend.
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I'll start again on Monday.
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So you practiced two days out of seven.
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Two days out of seven.
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And I had a different excuse every day.
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A perfect excuse every single day.
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An excuse.
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That's actually our topic today, Jake.
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It is?
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Yes.
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Today we're talking about excuses.
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An excuse is a reason you give for not doing something.
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E-X-C-U-S-E.
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Excuse.
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Like when I say I can't practice because I'm tired.
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Exactly like that.
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But here's the thing.
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Most excuses aren't real reasons.
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They're stories.
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Stories your brain tells you so you can stay comfortable.
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Stories?
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My brain tells me stories?
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Yes.
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Your brain loves comfort.
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It doesn't like change.
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It doesn't like hard things.
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So when you need to do something difficult, like practice English, your brain says, not today.
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You're too tired.
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You're too busy.
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You can do it tomorrow.
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That sounds exactly like my brain.
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It's very creative with excuses every single day.
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And you're not alone.
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Many English learners have the same problem.
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They want to learn.
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They really do.
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But their excuses stop them.
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So what do we do?
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Today, I'm going to share three truths, three secrets, and each one will break a common excuse.
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After today, you'll have no more excuses.
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No more excuses.
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I like that.
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But first, we have a small request.
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Yes, if you like our podcast, please click the like button.
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Please subscribe to enjoy English talks.
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And share this episode with your friends and family.
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Thank you.
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It helps us so much.
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We love our listeners.
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Okay, now let's start.
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I'm ready.
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Break my excuses, Judy.
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Let's talk about the first excuse, the most common one.
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Jake, have you ever said this, I don't have time?
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Ah, yes.
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I say it all the time.
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I don't have time to study.
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I don't have time to practice.
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I don't have time to listen to a podcast.
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I'm too busy.
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I'm too busy.
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Everyone says this.
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But here's secret number one.
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You don't need hours.
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You don't need hours?
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What do you mean?
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Many people think learning English means sitting down for one hour or two hours with a textbook, with flashcards, a big study session.
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And if they can't find two hours, they say, I don't have time.
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And they do nothing.
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That's me.
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If I can't do a big study session, I just don't do anything.
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But here's the truth.
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You don't need two hours.
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You don't even need one hour five minutes of english every day is better than two hours once a month.
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Five minutes?
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That's so short.
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What can I do in five minutes?
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A lot.
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In five minutes, you can listen to one short English video.
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You can read five comments on social media.
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You can say ten English sentences out loud.
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You can learn three new words.
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Three new words in five minutes.
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That's 21 words in one week and about 90 words in one month.
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That's real progress, real improvement, and all you need is five minutes.
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90 words?
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Just from five minutes a day?
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I never thought about it that way.
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Most people don't.
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They think five minutes is nothing.
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It won't help.
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But that's an excuse, too.
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Five minutes every day adds up, like drops of water in a glass.
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One drop is nothing, but many drops fill the glass drops of water i like
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that picture every five minutes is one drop think about it
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this way imagine you want to be healthier you want to exercise
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but you say i don't have time to go to the gym for one hour
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so you do nothing you sit on the sofa every day
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that sounds like me on weekends but what
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if you just walked for five minutes five minutes around your building five minutes after dinner would
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that help of course five minutes of walking is better than zero minutes of walking exactly
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and five minutes of english is better than zero minutes of
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english you don't need a big block of time you need a small moment
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while you wait for your coffee while you ride the bus
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while your food is in the microwave while my food is in the microwave That's about three minutes.
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I can learn two new words while I wait for my lunch.
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Now you're thinking.
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And here's a challenge for our listeners.
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Tonight, before you go to sleep, practice English for five minutes.
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Just five.
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Listen to a short video, read a few sentences, say some words out loud.
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Five minutes.
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Can you do that?
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I think everyone can do that.
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I think so too.
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No more excuses about time.
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You have five minutes.
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Everyone has five minutes.
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Everyone has five minutes.
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That's true.
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What's the next excuse?
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The second excuse is one I hear a lot.
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I'm too old to learn, or I'm not smart enough, or my brain can't do it.
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I've heard people say that.
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I wish I started when I was young.
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Now it's too late.
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And here's secret number two.
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You're never too late.
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Never too late?
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But isn't it easier to learn when you're a child?
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Children learn in a different way, yes.
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But that doesn't mean adults can't learn.
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Your brain can learn new things at any age.
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At 20, at 40, at 60, at 80.
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Your brain doesn't stop learning.
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It just needs practice.
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And adults actually have some advantages.
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You can focus better.
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You can understand grammar rules.
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You can choose what to study.
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Children can't do that.
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But sometimes I try to learn a new word and I forget it the next day.
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That makes me think my brain isn't good enough.
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That's normal.
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Everyone forgets.
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Even children forget.
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The difference is children aren't afraid of forgetting.
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They try again and again and again.
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They don't feel embarrassed.
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Embarrassed means they feel uncomfortable because of a mistake.
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Exactly.
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Children make mistakes and they laugh.
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They fall down and get up.
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They say the wrong word and try again.
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Adults make mistakes and they want to hide.
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But the mistake is how you learn.
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Every time you forget a word and learn it again, your brain makes the connection stronger.
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Like a path in the forest.
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The first time you walk it, it's hard to see, but every time you walk it again, it becomes clearer.
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A path in the forest.
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So every mistake makes the path clearer?
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Yes, every mistake.
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Every time you try, the path gets easier.
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So forgetting isn't bad?
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Not at all.
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Forgetting is part of learning.
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Think about cooking.
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When you first learned to cook, did you make perfect food every time?
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No, my first pasta was terrible.
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It was like soup.
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Pasta soup.
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My friends still talk about it.
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But did you stop cooking?
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No, I tried again. And again.
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And now my pasta is.. okay.
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Not great, but okay.
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See?
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You didn't say, I'm too old to cook, or my brain can't cook.
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You just tried again.
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You made a mistake, you learned from it, and the next time was better.
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That's true.
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My second pasta was much better than my first one.
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Learning English is the same thing.
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You try, you make mistakes, you try again.
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And slowly, you get better.
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Not perfect, but better.
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And better is enough.
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Slowly.
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I like that word.
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Slowly.
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Not fast, not perfect, just slowly getting better.
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And here's something important.
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You're already learning English right now.
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You're listening to this podcast.
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You're understanding these words.
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That means your brain can learn English.
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It's already doing it.
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You're right.
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I'm doing it right now.
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My brain is working.
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I can do this.
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Yes, you can.
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Now, let's talk about the last one, the most dangerous excuse of all.
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The most dangerous one?
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What is it?
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The I'll start tomorrow.
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Oh no. That's my favorite excuse.
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It's everyone's favorite excuse.
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Because it feels good.
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It feels like a plan.
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I'll start tomorrow.
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I'll study next week.
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I'll practice next month.
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It sounds like you're going to do it, but you never do.
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Because when tomorrow comes, I say tomorrow again and again and again.
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It's a circle.
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A never-ending circle.
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Exactly.
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Tomorrow is a trap.
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A trap is something that catches you.
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T-R-A-P.
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Trap.
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Like a trap for a mouse.
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The mouse sees the cheese and thinks, I'll go get it.
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But the trap closes.
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Tomorrow is like that cheese.
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It looks good, it feels safe, but it catches you.
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Because tomorrow never really comes.
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Today is always today, and tomorrow is always tomorrow.
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That's deep, Judy.
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Today is always today.
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I never thought about it that way.
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And here's secret number three.
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Start now, not tomorrow.
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Start now?
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Right now?
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Yes.
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Not after this podcast, not after dinner, not next Monday.
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Now.
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The best time to start was yesterday.
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The second best time is right now.
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But what if I'm not ready?
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Nobody is ever ready.
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Think about cleaning your house.
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Do you ever say, I'll clean the house tomorrow?
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Every weekend.
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Every single weekend.
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And what happens?
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The house gets messier and messier, and then on Sunday night, I clean everything in a panic.
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Panic means I'm very stressed and I do everything very fast.
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But what if you cleaned for just five minutes every day?
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One small thing.
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Wash the dishes, pick up some clothes, wipe the table.
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Then the house would never get that messy.
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I wouldn't need this Sunday night panic.
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Exactly.
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A little bit every day is better than a lot at the last minute.
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And English is the same.
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If you wait for tomorrow, the work gets bigger and scarier.
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But if you start with something small today, right now, it stays easy.
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It stays manageable.
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Manageable means you can handle it.
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It's not too big.
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It's not too scary.
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It's just right.
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Start small.
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Start now.
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Don't wait for the perfect moment.
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Because that moment never comes.
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You're absolutely right.
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The perfect moment doesn't exist.
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The perfect moment is now.
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Even if it's messy, even if you're tired, even if you only have five minutes, start.
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You know what, Judy?
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I'm going to do it.
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Tonight, five minutes of English practice.
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I'll watch one short video with subtitles.
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Just one.
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And I won't say tomorrow.
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I'm proud of you, Jake.
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And I want to tell our listeners something.
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You don't need to change your whole life today.
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You just need to take one small step.
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One small step today is worth more than a big plan for tomorrow.
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One small step.
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That's all it takes.
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Think about what you can do right now, after this podcast.
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Not next week, not next month, right now.
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Can you listen to one more English video?
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Can you learn three new words?
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Can you say one sentence in English out loud?
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Even one sentence is a step.
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Yes, and that one step is the beginning, the beginning of something great.
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No more excuses, just start.
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That's the spirit.
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Let's review what we learned today.
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Yes, let's see what we learned.
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Today we talked about excuses and three secrets to beat them.
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Secret one, you don't need hours.
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Five minutes of English every day is enough to start.
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Good.
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And secret two, you're never too late.
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Your brain can learn at any age.
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Mistakes are normal.
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Keep trying.
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And secret three, start now, not tomorrow.
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Tomorrow is a trap.
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The best time to start is right now.
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You remembered everything.
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I learned a lot today, and I feel different.
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I feel like I don't want to make excuses anymore.
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I want to do the work, even if it's small, even if it's just five minutes.
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And that feeling is the first step.
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When you stop making excuses and start taking action, everything changes.
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It doesn't matter how slow you go.
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It only matters that you don't stop.
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Don't stop.
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Keep going.
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Even on tired days.
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Even on busy days.
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Even on days when your brain says, not today.
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Especially on those days.
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because those are the days that matter most.
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This episode felt important.
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I think many of our listeners needed to hear this.
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I think so too.
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And I want to say something to our listeners.
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If you've been waiting to start, if you've been telling yourself tomorrow, please hear this.
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You can learn English.
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You're not too busy, you're not too old, and you don't need to be perfect.
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You just need to start.
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No more excuses.
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Starting right now.
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Well, that's all the time we have for today.
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Thank you so much for listening to Enjoy English Talks.
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Yes, thank you, everyone.
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Please subscribe to Enjoy English Talks.
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Give this episode a like.
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And share it with a friend.
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Now, we have a question for you today.
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Yes, please leave a comment below.
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Tell us, what's one small English goal you can start today?
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Not tomorrow, today.
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Maybe listen to one video.
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Maybe learn three new words.
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What will you do?
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We would love to read your answers.
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See you next time.
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Bye, everyone.
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Keep practicing your English.
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Vocabulary and speaking notes for this lesson
This video has 375 sentences and 2352 words to shadow. The speech runs for 15:19. The speaker talks at a natural 153 words per minute, close to everyday conversation. 89% of the words are among the 3,000 most common in English, so the vocabulary is easy to follow.
Key vocabulary in this video
15 words from the video worth learning, with pronunciation and meaning:
| Word | Pronunciation | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| trap noun | /tɹæp/ | A machine or other device designed to catch (and sometimes kill) animals, either by holding them in a container, or by catching hold of part of the body. |
| podcast noun | /ˈpɑdˌkæst/ | A program, especially an audio program, produced on a regular basis, delivered over the Internet in a compressed digital format and designed for playback on… |
| listener noun | /ˈlɪs(ə)nɚ/ | Someone who listens, especially to a speech or a broadcast. |
| pasta noun | /ˈpɑ.stə/ | Dough made from wheat and water and sometimes mixed with egg and formed into various shapes; often sold in dried form and typically boiled for eating. |
| messy adjective | /ˈmɛsi/ | In a disorderly state; chaotic; disorderly. |
| panic noun | /ˈpænɪk/ | Overwhelming fear or fright, often affecting groups of people or animals; (countable) an instance of this; a fright, a scare. |
| scary adjective | /ˈskɛə.ɹi/ | Causing fear or anxiety |
| mouse noun | /maʊs/ | Any mammal of the many rodent families (especially Muridae) that have a small body and a long tail. |
| soup noun | /sup/ | Any of various dishes commonly made by combining liquids, such as water or stock, with other ingredients, such as meat and vegetables, that contribute the food… |
| embarrassed adjective | /ɪmˈbæɹ.əst/ | Having a feeling of shameful discomfort. |
| subscribe verb | /səbˈskɹaɪb/ | To write (one’s name) at the bottom of a document; to sign (one's name). |
| microwave noun | /ˈmaɪkɹoʊˌweɪv/ | An electromagnetic wave with wavelength between that of infrared light and radio waves. |
| topic noun | /ˈtɑpɪk/ | A subject; a theme; a category or general area of interest. |
| comfort noun | /ˈkʌm.fət/ | Contentment, ease. |
| dish noun | /dɪʃ/ | A vessel such as a plate for holding or serving food, often flat with a depressed region in the middle. |
Phrasal verbs you will hear
| Word | Pronunciation | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| add up verb | To take the sum of; to total. | |
| fall down verb | /fɔl ˈdaʊn/ | To fall to the ground. To collapse. |
| get up verb | To move in an upward direction; to ascend or climb. | |
| pick up verb | To lift; to grasp and raise. |
Grammar in this video
The structures the speaker uses most, with the exact words from the video:
| Structure | In the video |
|---|---|
| Verb + -ing enjoy, keep, stop… + -ing — verbs that are followed by the -ing form | practice speaking · stop learning · stop cooking |
| Comparatives -er than / more … than — comparing two things | better than |
| Superlatives the -est / the most … — the top or bottom of a group | the most common · the most dangerous · The best |
| Future with “will” will + verb — a decision, promise or prediction | I'll do · I'll start · will break |
Pronunciation to watch
The speaker uses 92 contractions and reduced forms, such as don't, I'm, you're. Say them the short way, as you hear them.
- The “sh” and “zh” sounds: dish /dɪʃ/, flashcard /ˈflæʃˌkɑɹd/
- Long words — get the stress right: uncomfortable /ʌnˈkʌm.fɚ.tə.bl̩/, manageable /ˈmænəd͡ʒəb(ə)l/
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 trap, podcast, listener.
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.