Shadowing Practice: This 5 Second Trick Helps You Get MORE Done By Doing LESS | Mel Robbins - Learn English Speaking with Video
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Hey, I'm Mel Robbins, the creator of the 5 Second Rule.
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What is the 5 Second Rule?
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It's a form of metacognition that gives you immediate control over your thoughts and actions.
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Using the rule is so simple.
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The moment you feel your instincts fire up, just start counting backwards to yourself to switch the gears in your mind, 5, 4, 3, 2, 1,
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then give yourself a push forward.
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5, 4, 3, 2, 1, right up!
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Counting backwards requires focus.
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And when you focus, your prefrontal cortex awakens.
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And by the way, that's the part of the brain that helps you learn new positive behavior patterns.
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I first mentioned the rule in its head talk. Since then, more than 8 million people have discovered the rule through
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that talk and its powerful countdown trick to take control of their lives, become more confident, happy, and even make their dreams come true.
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I created this series of videos to help you better understand the 5
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Second Rule, the science behind it, how it works, and the specific ways you can use it to improve any area of your life.
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In this video, I'm going to show you the specific way that you can use the 5
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Second Rule to increase your productivity.
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Now first, let's talk a little bit about productivity as a concept.
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Productivity is not about blasting through your to -do list and doing more.
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It's actually about doing less.
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Productivity is the ability to make progress in the things that matter to you.
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It sounds simple, right?
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I mean, just move the ball down the field on the important stuff.
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But it's not easy.
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Why?
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Blame your feelings.
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You see, you're capable of being more productive.
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You're just waiting to feel like doing what you need to do.
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And guess what?
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You're never going to crack the whip on yourself
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when you have a million other things that you need to do and you've got people that are making demands on you.
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One thing that you must understand is that you have the power to decide what's important.
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And productivity actually boils down to simple five -second decisions.
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Here's one that you need to start making immediately that will have a tremendous impact on your ability to be productive.
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When the alarm goes off,
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do you wake up early to work on your business or do you blow it off because you don't feel like it?
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You're tired.
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Or do you stick to the plan to finish some important tasks or do you mainline Facebook instead because, ah, you'd just rather relax.
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When you change your decisions, you'll change everything.
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Because productivity boils down to the ability to make small five -second decisions that put the things that are important first.
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And here's one five -second decision that will make you more productive than any other.
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Get up 30 minutes earlier than you normally do and push yourself to work on the most important priorities first.
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This isn't just me.
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Research shows that your most productive hours are the first two to three hours after you wake up and get ready.
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This means that for peak productivity, you've got to do whatever
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you can do to make sure the most important work to you gets done first during that window of time.
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So here's how you're going to use the rule.
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The moment your alarm goes off and you want to hit the snooze button, use the rule.
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5, 4, 3, 2, 1, push yourself out of bed.
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Then use the rule again.
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5, 4, 3, 2, 1, sit down and get working on the things that matter to you instead of checking your phone,
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instead of letting your day get hijacked.
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You see, the moment you feel yourself wanting to give in to distraction, you're going to use the rule again.
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5 -4 -3 -2 -1, do assert control and get back on task to the things that matter to you.
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It doesn't really matter how busy you are.
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We're all busy.
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If you really care, you'll find the time.
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And that's how you're going to use the rule, to find the time to work on things that matter to you.
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This is what Rachel did.
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She wanted to change her life, so she decided to make progress on what was important.
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And she did this by starting with getting up earlier, getting out of bed, and 5 -4 -3 -2 -1, focusing on what mattered.
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And as you can see, that small five -second decision, getting up 30 minutes earlier, started a chain of events that changed her entire life.
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She lost 30 pounds, she bought her first home, and she reinvigorated her marriage.
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Why?
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The reason why is because she learned how to beat the feelings and excuses that stopped her,
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and she found the time to work on things that matter.
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That is the definition of productivity.
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Getting the important stuff done only works when you push yourself to do it.
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And when you push yourself, five second decision, to wake up earlier and start your day off right,
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you will be shocked by what changes it ignites.
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This is just the tip of the iceberg when it comes to productivity.
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There are tons of strategies that I discussed that are based in research in chapter 10 of the five -second rule book.
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and how you can use all of this research in combination with the five -second rule to not only become more productive,
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but to end procrastinating forever, to regain your focus whenever you get distracted,
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and lots of other things that are gonna help you improve your quality of work and also your life.
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The book is available on Amazon, barnesandnoble .com, and at your local bookstore.
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Oh, and by the way,
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your five -second rule book also comes with 31 video mentoring sessions to deepen your mastery of the rule for lasting results.
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Now, these mentoring sessions will be delivered to your email inbox for free,
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and information on how to get these videos is on the very last page of the book.
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And to learn more about the five -second rule and other research -backed strategies to help you live your best life,
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there's a ton of free resources at melrobins .com.
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If you ever have the instinct to reach out, please use the five -second rule and make yourself do it.
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Just tag me on social media using the hashtag five -second rule or shoot me an email at hello at melrobbins .com.
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I love hearing from you.
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Now give us a few days to get back in touch with you,
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but we will absolutely respond if you take the time to trust your instincts and reach out.
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Look, it takes five seconds to change your life.
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So the next time you feel yourself hesitate or your instincts come alive, That's the moment to stop thinking.
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Five, four, three, two, one, and start living.
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Vocabulary and speaking notes for this lesson
This speaking lesson is built on the video “This 5 Second Trick Helps You Get MORE Done By Doing LESS”. The speaker keeps coming back to these words: rule, productivity, decision, productive, push. This video has 89 sentences and 1127 words to shadow. The speech runs for 6:29. The speaker talks at a natural 174 words per minute, close to everyday conversation. 91% 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 |
|---|---|---|
| productivity noun | /ˌpɹɒdʌkˈtɪvəti/ | The state of being productive, fertile, or efficient. |
| productive adjective | /pɹəˈdʌk.tɪv/ | Capable of producing something, especially in abundance; fertile. |
| instinct noun | /ˈɪn.stɪŋkt/ | A natural or inherent impulse or behaviour. |
| alarm noun | /əˈlɑɹm/ | A summons to arms, as on the approach of an enemy. |
| mentor noun | /ˈmɛn.tɔː/ | A wise and trusted counselor or teacher. |
| boil verb | /bɔɪ(ə)l/ | To heat to the point where it begins to turn into a gas. |
| backward adjective | /ˈbækwɚd/ | Situated toward or at the rear of something. |
| trick noun | /ˈtɹɪk/ | Something designed to fool, dupe, outsmart, mislead or swindle. |
| gear noun | /ɡɪɚ/ | Equipment or paraphernalia, especially that used for an athletic endeavor. |
| shock noun | /ʃɔk/ | A sudden, heavy impact. |
| crack noun | /kɹæk/ | A thin and usually jagged space opened in a previously solid material. |
| priority noun | /pɹaɪˈɒɹɪti/ | An item's relative importance. |
| discover verb | /dɪˈskʌvə/ | To find or learn something for the first time. |
| resource noun | /ɹɪˈzɔːs/ | Something that one uses to achieve an objective, e.g. raw materials or personnel. |
| blast noun | /blæst/ | A violent gust of wind (in windy weather) or apparent wind (around a moving vehicle). |
Phrasal verbs you will hear
| Word | Pronunciation | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| get up verb | To move in an upward direction; to ascend or climb. | |
| wake up verb | /ˌweɪk ˈʌp/ | To stop sleeping; to awake. |
| go off verb | To explode. | |
| reach out verb | To extend one's hand(s) forward; to reach for something. | |
| get out of verb | To leave, exit or escape from; to become free of. | |
| push forward verb | To continue to act or do something, especially with a lot of effort | |
| sit down verb | To assume a sitting position from a standing position. |
Sentences worth repeating
Short, complete lines from the video that you can reuse in everyday conversation:
- You see, you're capable of being more productive.
- When you change your decisions, you'll change everything.
- It doesn't really matter how busy you are.
- If you really care, you'll find the time.
Pronunciation to watch
The speaker uses 19 contractions and reduced forms, such as you're, I'm, you'll. Say them the short way, as you hear them.
- The “sh” and “zh” sounds: shock /ʃɔk/, distraction /dɪsˈtɹæk.ʃən/, hashtag /ˈhæʃˌtæɡ/
- Long words — get the stress right: productivity /ˌpɹɒdʌkˈtɪvəti/, priority /pɹaɪˈɒɹɪti/, procrastinate /pɹoʊˈkɹæs.tə.neɪt/
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 productivity, productive, instinct.
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.