Shadowing Practice: The mindset shift that changed my 20s. - Learn English Speaking with YouTube
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I hope you'll be there.
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I hope you'll be there.
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We'll see each other again soon.
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I hope so.
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We will.
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I do very well.
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Okay.
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Call me, okay?
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I will.
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Take care.
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Bye!
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Bye!
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See ya!
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See ya!
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I just got back from a trip to LA.
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I've been traveling a lot lately and while it's been fun I'm very happy to be home.
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While I was there I met up with a new creator friend Megan Tan in person for the first time ever.
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It was such an adventure and I think we had an even better time than we thought we would.
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Today I want to talk about the one mindset shift that completely changed my 20s.
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For the past several years,
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I've had this personal motto that goes,
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say yes now, figure it out later.
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I've talked about it once on here before,
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and it is a motto that I hold very close to my heart
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and has been responsible for many events in my life.
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It's my little tattoo on my wrist,
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and I cannot believe it's already been two years since I got this thing.
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That's crazy.
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A lot has changed since then,
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and I always find it very interesting to revisit themes at different phases in my life and see if it's still relevant,
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if things have changed, or if it's reinforced.
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And for this in particular there have been a few things that have reminded me of it.
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When I had first come up with the phrase,
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figure it out later, it was after I had dropped out of college and was slowly finding my way in the world.
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I had an idea of what I wanted to do,
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but I wasn't great at putting myself out there.
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I cared way too much about what people thought.
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I was way too in my head about some things,
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and I struggled to really find my voice.
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And throughout this time, Figure It Out was my anchor.
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It was a way of reminding myself to just make a decision,
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and I will figure it out when I get there.
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Sort of having this trust in yourself while taking these leaps of faith
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and periodically it will pop in and out of my life.
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I think we inherently know when we connect with the idea of something.
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It feels exciting and terrifying all at once.
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But before we even have the chance to pursue it,
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we often hold ourselves back because we don't know how it will turn out.
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When Megan asked me to go on a trip to the west coast,
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there was a moment where I felt hesitant to go.
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It had been a while since I've done anything like that.
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We had only just begun to know each other and I was considering saying no.
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But you never know what an opportunity will lead to,
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and you never know how impactful something will be till after you've done it.
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There could be a million different things that could make it the wrong choice,
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but you only need a few good reasons for it to be right.
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When it comes to these giant leaps of faith,
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quitting your job, taking the trip,
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meeting someone for the first time,
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it always leads back to this four-letter word, risk.
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Beautiful outside.
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There was a period of my life where I was feeling very stagnant.
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I wasn't meeting new people or experiencing new things,
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but I was also not putting myself out there at the same time.
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It's so easy to be comfortable in your bubble,
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but I think it's also important not to take it too far,
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and it's not about saying yes to everything,
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but it's important to know when something will be a healthy push.
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It can be intimidating to open yourself up,
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to show the world who you are and not know how it's gonna be received.
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This place.
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But never going to know what's on the other side unless we're willing to take
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that first step and see where that tells us where to go next.
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The beauty of putting yourself out there is
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that it also forces you to be adaptable and creative in ways you may have not expected.
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It's sunny California.
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It opens you up to seeing things in a different way,
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learning from different people, and maybe even finding things you weren't even looking for.
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There will always be some level of risk involved
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when it comes to doing something completely out of the ordinary from what we're used to.
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But honestly, I think that's just the name of the game.
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And depending on what season of life we're in,
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it's either gonna be a yes or a no. And I think both answers are valid.
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It depends just where you're at in life.
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And if it's a yes,
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then sometimes it'll work and sometimes it won't.
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But either way, you'll learn something from it.
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My creative journey so far has been full of moments where I had to try different things and experiment,
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whether it was collaborating with new people,
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exploring different styles, or diving into new formats.
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Many of the ideas that I had this year,
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including my collab with Megan,
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have been made possible with the support of Epidemic Sound,
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who has provided me with so much of my soundtrack over the past year,
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so a huge thank you to them.
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Using Epidemic Sound allowed me to focus more on my creativity,
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knowing that I had access to a huge library of licensed music
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and sound effects that could fit any vibe that I'm going for.
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Epidemic makes things incredibly easy,
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from being able to organize my own project playlists to what's probably my favorite feature,
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downloading stems of a song.
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As I've grown as a creator,
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I've learned that having reliable tools like Epidemic Sound is so crucial.
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It's helped me stay true to my creative vision without second guessing myself.
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When they hooked it up,
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I was able to get a 25% off code off of yearly plans,
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but it is only available for this week.
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So if you've been thinking about it, then get on it.
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Just remember to paste in the code.
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So if you are ready to bring your stories to life,
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then I highly, highly recommend Epidemic Sound.
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And you can check them out using the link in my description.
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There's a certain naive confidence you have when you just enter your 20s,
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unlike any other part of your life.
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It's the easiest to lose and the longest to get back,
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and if there was one part of that era I could take to the next,
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I think it probably would be that.
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It is quite the claim that this is the mindset that helped me navigate my 20s out of everything else.
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But looking back, I can't imagine all the things I would have missed out on,
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and all the things that led to another since then.
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It is truly one of the few themes in my life that keep on reoccurring,
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in between all the years and different contexts and routes.
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And each time still holds this universal truth,
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that it starts with what you think you can do,
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but ends with finding out.
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So I hope you enjoyed this video.
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It was very fun to revisit a topic and see where I was at with it.
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Safe to say, my trip to California with Megan was not a disaster.
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In fact, it was the complete opposite.
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I guess you got to see a little bit of the behind the scenes in this video,
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but Megan made a beautiful video while we were on our trip in California.
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So if you haven't seen that yet,
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then please check it out.
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As always, thank you for watching.
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You can find me on Instagram at Life of Risa in the meantime,
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and I will see you in the next one.
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Bye!
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you
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Context & Background
In the video titled "The mindset shift that changed my 20s," the speaker shares personal insights about their transformative experiences during their twenties. Emphasizing the importance of saying "yes" to new opportunities, the speaker reflects on how this mindset allowed them to explore beyond their comfort zone. This narrative not only highlights their interactions with friends, such as Megan Tan, but also delves into the internal struggles of finding one's voice and making significant life choices. The theme encourages viewers to embrace uncertainty and take risks, which can be particularly beneficial for English language learners aiming to practice speaking in real-life scenarios.
Top 5 Phrases for Daily Communication
- "I hope you'll be there." - A friendly expression indicating anticipation for a future meeting.
- "I do very well." - A confident way to express that you are doing fine, a useful response in conversations.
- "Call me, okay?" - A casual request that helps to maintain connections.
- "Take care." - A common farewell that conveys well wishes.
- "We'll see each other again soon." - A reassuring phrase that indicates hope for future encounters.
Step-by-step Shadowing Guide
To effectively utilize the shadowing technique based on this video, follow these steps to improve your English pronunciation and speaking skills:
- Watch the Video: Begin by watching the video without subtitles. Focus on the speaker's tone, intonation, and rhythm.
- Listen Actively: Play the video again, this time pausing after each sentence. Listen to how the speaker phrases their thoughts.
- Repeat Aloud: Use the shadow speech technique by repeating what the speaker says immediately after they say it. This helps to mimic their pronunciation and cadence.
- Practice with Phrases: Select key phrases from the "Top 5 Phrases for Daily Communication" section. Write them down and practice saying them in different contexts.
- Record Yourself: After several practice rounds, record yourself speaking. Compare your pronunciation with the original. Identify areas for improvement.
By incorporating these steps into your daily English speaking practice, you will not only learn English with YouTube but also become more confident in engaging with others in conversation. Embrace the excitement and challenges of speaking, and trust in your ability to figure it out later!
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.
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