Episode 212
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Read the Transcript
Follow the text while you listen, then repeat useful sentences aloud.
Hi, everybody! I am Georgiana, your English teacher and founder of SpeakEnglishPodcast.com. My mission is to help you speak English fluently.
Today, I am going to continue talking about how to manage your time to learn English.
Ok. Let’s start!
#1 Treat yourself!
What better way to motivate yourself than to treat yourself! Yes, you deserve it. Well, only when you achieve the goal, of course. Maybe after getting to 5 hours of listening in a week, you can afford something special like watching a movie, going out to eat at your favorite restaurant, etc.
The treat doesn't have to be something fancy or expensive. It can be of minor importance, but it helps to stay motivated.
By the way, I recommend that you don't do it the other way around. First, the treat to motivate yourself, and then the study. I've tried it the other way around:) So no donuts before you start!
#2 Create a routine.
As human beings, we like routines. That is, we like to do the same things repeatedly because what the brain does is automate many of our behaviors.
Suppose you make yourself a cup of coffee every day. You can take the opportunity to put on your headphones and listen to a few minutes of an English lesson. Soon, you will associate making coffee with listening to English. It sounds silly, but it works.
They say that to establish a routine; you need about 21 days. That is about three weeks. Although the exact number of days is not important, we can draw the following conclusion: to create a routine; you need little time. So, you can consider creating a specific routine to listen to at certain times of the day.
#3 Keeping track of the time you are listening.
Although everyone is different, many people like to keep track of the number of hours they listen to when learning English.
This gives you a sense of progress in your learning and informs you when you are not doing well.
So, you could write down the time you spend listening. And add it up by weeks and also months. This way, you can project how much time you will spend listening in a year, make averages, etc.
And you don't have to be precise. It doesn't matter if you listen for 55 minutes or a little over an hour. Just write down an hour, and that's it.
Oh, and... Why don't you share this with someone else who is learning English? Imagine going for coffee and talking about how your week went. How many hours you listened, if it was difficult, etc. This way, you can motivate each other and set common goals.
Well, I hope I have helped you with these new reflections.
Now, let’s practice.
Want more speaking practice? Continue with a complete audio course.
IMPROVE YOUR SPEAKING
Mini-Story: Speaking Practice
Answer the questions aloud with short and quick responses. Repeat the Mini-Story several times to improve your speaking and listening.
Mia was determined to learn English once and for all.
Was Mia determined to teach English?
No, she wasn't determined to teach English; she was determined to learn English.
Who was determined?
Mia. Mia was determined.
What did Mia want to learn?
English. She wanted to learn English.
As a treat, Mia drank a cup of coffee for every hour of audio she listened to.
Did she drink a glass of milk for every hour of audio?
No, not a glass of milk. A cup of coffee.
Did she drink a cup of coffee as a punishment?
No. No. Not as a punishment but as a treat. Mia drank a cup of coffee for every hour she listened to English.
Mia was drinking ten cups of coffee when she started suffering from insomnia.
How many cups of coffee was she drinking?
Ten. She listened for ten hours and drank ten cups of coffee when she began to suffer from insomnia.
What was she drinking? Beer?
No, no. Not beer. Ten beers a day would be too much. She was drinking coffee.
What did she start suffering from?
Insomnia. She started suffering from insomnia because of the coffee. Ten cups of coffee a day is also a lot.
Mia replaced coffee with herbal teas to help her sleep at night.
Did Mia replace coffee with wine?
No. She didn't replace coffee with wine. She replaced it with herbal teas. She did that so she could sleep at night.
Why did Mia do that?
So she could sleep at night. She replaced coffee with herbal teas so she could sleep at night.
Mia no longer had insomnia, but she went to the bathroom all the time because the infusions were diuretic.
Was Mia still unable to sleep?
No, she was not still unable to sleep. She no longer suffered from insomnia, but she went to the bathroom all the time.
Where did Mia go?
To the bathroom. She went to the bathroom.
Why did she go to the bathroom all the time?
She went to the bathroom all the time because the infusions were diuretic.
Thanks for listening, and I’ll see you in the next episode.
Review
Vocabulary
Review the most useful words and expressions before listening again.
treat yourself
give yourself something enjoyable as a reward.
create a routine
establish a regular pattern of activity.
keep track of
continue to know or record the progress of something.
reward
something given in recognition of effort or achievement.
habit
a behavior repeated regularly, often automatically.
consistency
the practice of doing something steadily over time.
listening time
the amount of time spent listening to English.
goal
a result that you want to achieve.
Want more speaking practice? Continue with a complete audio course.
I started listening to Georgiana’s lessons a month ago, honestly it’s as if I’ve been studying with her for 6 months; his lessons are very interesting and very useful
I will continue to listen more
thank you very much.