Shadowing Practice: Train Your Brain to Focus | Andrew Huberman Motivation - Learn English Speaking with Video

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Losers take things that happen to them, and indeed sometimes that are things that happened to them that they could not control,

or missteps, or errors, or losses, and they ruminate on it,

and they turn those thoughts and those emotions into things that harm themselves or others.

winners take the things that happen to them good or bad

and they transmute that sometimes through very hard work

that involves talking to oneself reminding oneself journaling things out forcing oneself to make better decisions

and they take those hard things and they turn them into actions

that are supportive and indeed generative for them and for others in the world.

Chop wood, carry water, which is a phrase which just means some days you don't think about why, you just chop wood, carry water.

This is how you keep a village going, right?

Chop wood, carry water.

And I said, I'm doing this simply because I said I would chop wood, carry water.

Resentments would come up.

Why did I do this?

I can get out of this.

Push that aside, chop wood, carry water.

Took time, took much longer than I thought, but you get there.

What was I doing?

It was just lowering the stakes.

Just do it today.

Just today.

One more day.

I think when people get to that place where they could do something and they freeze, they're imagining how great it could go.

We think they're imagining how terrible it could go.

But what causes us to choke is, oh my goodness, like so much is at stake.

If I can't do this, I can't do anything.

So they're psyching themselves out.

So lower the stakes, give it, go all in instead of for three years, go all in for three days and then quit.

Talk to me after three days.

If you survive three days, you can survive three more days.

You survive those three days, you can have another three days

and just keep going lower the like bring the horizon in

bring the time horizon in that's the way to do it now the person who just jumps we love

and admire those people you did it i did it

but the timing has to be right too you can't be reckless

you can't be haphazard we know this right that's how you get yourself killed in physical endeavors

and that's how you lose everything in financial endeavors right

you know um what is it i think

it's like the warren buffett saying like you know

they're you know three things kill men in in finance like it's like a liquor

you know um ladies

if they you know they're not faithful they pick you know they have crazy you know dating life

and this kind of thing um

and leverage they over leverage like you know i mean you can be take on too much risk

and lose right

and the other two the the first two there it's worth mentioning

i've studied many stories of success in the creative arts in science and and to some extent even in podcasting now,

the excesses that people bring about when they start to do really well are often what take them down.

Overspending, drugs, you know, I mean like we've watched this recent Conor McGregor thing.

This guy was at the pinnacle, right?

And I don't know what his specific issues were, but too much money, too many resources,

not enough people around you to keep you in check and somebody can collapse.

It's very easy to see and to recognize

when somebody has a substance abuse issue or

if they have a behavioral regulation issue and they're like getting in fights in bars or things like that,

you know, which sadly happened to a number of people who are like pro athletes.

But the excesses are also excesses of ego where people think, oh, like I won the last, I built 10 companies.

I can build 10 more.

How about one more better than all the other 10?

The most important thing for this 25 year old hypothetical person to do is to understand

that there are a few non -negotiables in their physiology and psychology that are directly linked, that they have to obey as often as possible.

Notice I didn't say every single day, but as often as possible in order to get the most out of their life.

What are those?

Well, as weird as it may sound, the most important thing to do is to ensure,

and there are ways to do that we can talk about in a moment, to ensure that you have high morning cortisol levels,

the so -called stress hormone, which is not a stress hormone.

We'll talk about why it's involved in stress

but cortisol is involved in much much more you want to take steps simple steps

that i'll describe to amplify your morning cortisol in the first hour

or two of your day and to make sure

that in the last hour or

so of your day most days your cortisol is low now why what what what in the world like okay

but if you were going to build a human machine okay i'm not talking about psychology now

but you wanted to build a human machine actually let's make it a happy

quote -unquote dangerous machine you would say get

that morning cortisol peak as as high as you can get

your night time last hour before sleep cortisol level as low as you can why when you do that it

It sets this person up to have vastly higher levels of daytime energy,

focus, ability to learn, resilience to stress when stress comes along, and ease in falling to sleep,

deep sleep, rapid eye movement sleep.

These are the things of repair of the body, repair of the mind, consolidating learning,

removing the emotional load of previous day experiences that might have been, you know, difficult or stressful,

taking off the emotional load so they can go into the next day

and they can continue to show up for their family, their work, their health, and so on and so forth.

It also turns out this pattern of high morning cortisol, low nighttime cortisol is the pattern that men,

women, people of all ages should have to optimize their immune system function.

So, talking about getting sick less and on and on

and on in fact the real key to becoming what you call dangerous

and ultra resilient

or anti -fragile whatever language you want to use is you learn to recognize what state

you're in this is this is the piece actually

that sits even deeper than all the rest you know the oracle said it first

but know thyself you have to know where you're at am

i in a good state am i in a vulnerable state

if i go on social media now and i see something that upsets me?

Am I just going to go down that rabbit hole?

We all like to think we can just blaze through life, but knowing where you're at is like checking the engine, checking the machine.

Is the steering aligned?

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I don't sleep as much as I need to, or I have stressors in my life.

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My steering's not aligned.

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So I have to do other things to keep myself in check.

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What we don't acknowledge and people need to understand is that the better you get at something,

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something this is a it's a weird one the better

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you get at something the more of an inroad into your energy it creates now this is weird right because

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when you're first learning something it takes a lot of energy

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then you get you get fluid with it you can sit down

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and podcast I can sit down

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and podcast under most any conditions right as long as there's enough oxygen in the room

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and maybe even if there's not you

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and I can have a great podcast we just know how to do it but to really drop into your craft,

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and I don't care if it's podcasting or finance or sport or medicine, it creates an inroad into your energy.

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And it is greater than when you're not very skilled at something because you're engaging more and more and more focused.

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So I think there's two things.

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The early part of any career, you have to find your edge.

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Okay.

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So this runs a little bit countercurrent to everything I've said, but you're trying to figure out, yeah, how little sleep can I exist on.

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Okay.

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I break at two nights, no sleep.

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I break.

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I can do one night.

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In fact, I did it last week, 30 hour work stretch with my business partner.

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Haven't done that in a long time.

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We did it.

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It hurt.

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We did it.

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We carried each other.

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I was like, I could tell when my mind was getting wobbly, he would step in, we would do things and we did it.

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We had to do it.

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Feels good.

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I don't really want to do that again for a long while.

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But I built that capacity over many years.

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Okay.

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You build that capacity by finding your edge.

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Now, you don't want to die or injure yourself or become mentally sick,

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but you get to that edge and then you stay away from that edge.

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And then, so I would say in the first year or two of doing something, go for it.

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Just go all in, reset only as needed to just keep coming back, keep coming back, keep coming back.

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But at some point you're going to hit a wall.

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You want that wall to be a non -lethal wall.

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You want that wall to be, I'm exhausted.

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I need a week off I can't afford a week off okay

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I hit my wall that's my limit what can I do every day at this point consistently over time

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and work around that average it's going to balance around

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that average plus or minus two hours or

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so do you think at this time

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when somebody's feeling like this absolute shit they are low

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there's no connection there are no people there's no one to held their hand

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and like you know hold their hand

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and get them out of the shit right do you think what we were talking about earlier, that you should strip away everything.

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Do you think it's the right time to do it?

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Okay, well, you're here.

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So I would advise, and I realize this might sound a little bit loaded,

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but I would advise if you are really at the bottom of your pit, obviously that you need to seek help,

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but ask whatever you believe in.

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Okay, I believe in God, but whatever you believe in,

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just acknowledge out loud alone or in your head if you don't want anyone to hear you

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i'm at my end I can't do this on my own anymore.

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Just help me get through the next hour.

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Just go another hour.

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Just help me do that.

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Just help me.

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Ask if you want to ask God, do it.

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If you want to ask the universe, whatever it is, you know, and just stop trying to control every aspect in your mind.

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Now, I just got through saying that you have to like pull yourself back over to the right response.

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But if you truly can't do that, then it's time to give it over and just acknowledge,

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you know, have a good laugh out loud.

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It's hard to be human sometimes.

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It's beautiful.

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It's great.

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But it can be really hard to be human.

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It can be really tough.

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We're a weird species.

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We got this amazing prefrontal cortex and we can do amazing things with it.

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But sometimes it loops back on us

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and it was just like we're it flagellates us and we can't and we're like i can't break out of this

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that's when it's time to say okay i can't

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so i'm gonna give this process just like help me go another hour

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and i i guarantee you'll get there and i have my thoughts about why

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that might work none of them fall within the realm of science

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so it's not really worth me going into because it's not my expertise

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but i've never seen this fail

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but once you're back on slightly solid ground now you got to get to work

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because the universe only whatever god the universe whatever you believe in only rewards effort

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or the effort to engage in effort you don't we've been gifted life we can relax we can enjoy

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but we don't get to uh we don't get to waste it

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and we really we were here i mean maybe that's what the acknowledging

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that we're alive

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and breathing piece is about like like don't take it for granted like i do think

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that we're rewarded for any amount of effort

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that we we put in any amount maybe not in getting the thing we thought we were going to get

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but in the recognition that we can we can pursue things

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so i i believe in this very strongly

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because i've been at the bottom of that pit

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and wondering what in the world but the good news is

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if you hit the bottom of that pit

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and you get out a few times the next time you hit it you go i'll get out the next time.

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And then you go, well, this feels a little longer than the last time or a lot longer than the last time.

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You will get out.

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You do.

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People have suffered incredible challenges and they got out and created amazing things.

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And there's this weird law of the universe that I don't quite understand.

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Maybe it's a dopaminergic thing,

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but the depth of that pit oftentimes is the mirror image of the height of the thing that you're going to accomplish.

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I don't know how that works, but later you're going to find yourself at a peak and you should remember and go,

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yeah, got out, got out, went back in, went back in, got out.

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Now I'm here and I'm going to savor it a little bit more because that's, I think also us being tested.

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Are you going to savor it?

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You're going to appreciate it.

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You're going to share it because then we can build on it.

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But otherwise you might not end up in the pit, but you kind and drop back down again.

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But if you take good care, you can stay at a high level for a long time.

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Are some people built different?

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I do think that people who like to build things have to build things.

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Some people report this.

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They believe when they're born that they're like fated to do something, something.

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It's like they have this kind of like level of vibration in their nervous system

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that they need to like take it someplace and you're like, do something with this.

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And when you give them something to bite down on and they just go, and hopefully they bite down into something that's generative and healthy.

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Humans are a unique animal, but I spend a lot of time thinking about the nervous systems of other animals too,

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for reasons related to my scientific career.

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Some species of animals have a lot of energy

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and others got very like a loafed and then they occasionally do something, right?

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People are kind of like that too.

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I do think that some people are just more relaxed.

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They're not as driven.

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I think they are still fundamentally important to society.

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And I don't say that just to be politically correct.

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I think that we need people who are just going to tend to certain things day in, day out on a very consistent level.

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And they're not trying to break out of their current circumstances.

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And I would ask them with kindness, do you really want it?

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Or are you in the wrong domain?

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Maybe you want it.

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but you need to think about what it is.

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Like, and it's tough because in years, that's years one, two, and three, it does take an extreme output to see how far you can go.

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But until you've given something, you know, three years of really solid effort, like bordering on extreme effort, you don't know where it can go.

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True.

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You don't really know.

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And it's tough because not everyone can do that.

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You know, suddenly they find themselves with a new child at home.

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And then the certain, although many people have made it work anyway.

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252 sentences

Vocabulary and speaking notes for this lesson

This speaking lesson is built on the video “Train Your Brain to Focus”. This video has 241 sentences and 2801 words to shadow. The speech runs for 15:17. The speaker talks fast, about 183 words per minute, so expect linked and reduced sounds. 88% 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
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…
chop verb	/t͡ʃɑp/	To cut into pieces with short, vigorous cutting motions.
acknowledge verb	/əkˈnɑ.lɪd͡ʒ/	To admit the knowledge of; to recognize as a fact or truth; to declare one's belief in.
excess noun	/ˈɛksɛs/	The state of surpassing or going beyond a limit; the state of being beyond sufficiency, necessity, or duty; more than what is usual or proper.
stake noun	/steɪk/	A piece of wood or other material, usually long and slender, pointed at one end so as to be easily driven into the ground as a marker or a support or stay.
repair verb	/ˈɹiːpɛɚ/	To restore to good working order, fix, or improve damaged condition; to mend; to remedy.
engage verb	/ɪnˈɡeɪd͡ʒ/	To engross or hold the attention of; to keep busy or occupied.
reward noun	/ɹɪˈwɔɹd/	Something of value given in return for an act.
bite verb	/baɪt/	To cut into something by clamping the teeth.
psychology noun	/saɪˈkɑ.lə.d͡ʒi/	The study of the human mind.
relax verb	/ɹɪˈlæks/	To make something loose.
horizon noun	/həˈɹaɪ.zən/	The visible horizontal line (in all directions) where the sky appears to meet the earth in the distance.
leverage noun	/ˈlɛv.(ə.)ɹɪd͡ʒ/	A force compounded by means of a lever rotating around a pivot.
hormone noun	/ˈhoɹmoʊn/	Any substance produced by one tissue and conveyed by the bloodstream to another to effect physiological activity.
align verb	/əˈlaɪn/	To form a line; to fall into line.

Phrasal verbs you will hear

Word	Pronunciation	Meaning
get out verb		To leave or escape.
come back verb		To return to a place.
get through verb	/ɡɛt ˈθɹu/	To overcome; to endure.
sit down verb		To assume a sitting position from a standing position.
come along verb		To accompany.
come up verb		To emerge or become known, especially unexpectedly.
drop back verb		Of a quarterback or other player in the backfield, to take a number of steps back from the line of scrimmage immediately after the snap or hike of the ball, to…
figure out verb		To come to understand; to discover or find a solution; to deduce.

Sentences worth repeating

Short, complete lines from the video that you can reuse in everyday conversation:

Why did I do this?
What was I doing?
We think they're imagining how terrible it could go.
Do you think it's the right time to do it?
Are you going to savor it?

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	i've studied · we've watched · I've said
Relative clauses who / which + clause — extra information about a person or thing	water, which is · person who just · people who are
Passive voice be + past participle — the focus is on what happens, not who does it	is involved · we've been gifted · being tested

Pronunciation to watch

The speaker uses 78 contractions and reduced forms, such as don't, you're, can't. Say them the short way, as you hear them.

The “th” sounds: breathe /bɹiːð/, athlete /ˈæθ.liːt/, faithful /ˈfeɪθ.fl̩/, lethal /ˈliː.θəl/, hypothetical /ˌhaɪpəˈθɛtɪkəl/
The “sh” and “zh” sounds: recognition /ˌɹɛkəɡˈnɪʃ(ə)n/, occasionally /əˈkeɪʒənəli/, regulation /ˌɹɛɡjʊˈleɪʃən/, emotion /ɪˈməʊ.ʃən/, accomplish /əˈkɑm.plɪʃ/
Long words — get the stress right: psychology /saɪˈkɑ.lə.d͡ʒi/, recognition /ˌɹɛkəɡˈnɪʃ(ə)n/, occasionally /əˈkeɪʒənəli/, regulation /ˌɹɛɡjʊˈleɪʃən/, consistently /kənˈsɪstəntli/

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 podcast, chop, acknowledge.

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: Train Your Brain to Focus | Andrew Huberman Motivation - Learn English Speaking with Video

Choose a practice mode

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Vocabulary and speaking notes for this lesson

Key vocabulary in this video

Phrasal verbs you will hear

Sentences worth repeating

Grammar in this video

Pronunciation to watch

How to practise with this video

What is the Shadowing Technique?