Hi, friends.
Welcome back to Podcast and Chill.
I'm Gwen.
And I'm Leo.
Good to have you here.
So, Leo, we're almost at the end of 2025.
How are you feeling?
Honestly?
A bit tired.
This year went by so fast.
Right?
It's crazy.
But you know what?
I think it's a good time to look back.
Think about what we learned.
Yeah, for sure.
I made some mistakes this year, but I also learned a lot.
Same here.
And I think a lot of people feel the same way.
We're all trying to be better, but sometimes we just don't know how.
Exactly.
I really want to figure out how not to repeat the same mistakes next year.
That's exactly what we're doing in today's episode.
We're talking about 10 things we learned in 2025, things we learned from our mistakes.
These 10 lessons are simple but very useful.
They'll help you and me become better next year.
And you know what else can help you?
Our PDF with today's transcript, vocabulary, and exercises.
You can find the PDFs link in the description box below.
Ready?
Let's chill and learn.
Here we go.
The first lesson I want to talk about is about the content we read or watch.
It's really important to choose the right one.
Oh, yes.
There's so much information out there, especially online.
If we try to read everything, our brains just get tired.
That's true.
Brain rot content is even worse.
That kind of content makes my attention shorter and shorter.
You know what I mean?
Yes.
Short-form content wants you to keep watching, but it doesn't give you anything good.
It just makes you tired and takes your attention.
Ugh, that was me.
I'd watch video after video, and suddenly it's midnight.
And then what happened?
Next day, I felt tired.
Not just physically, but mentally too.
That's because your brain needs rest, Leo.
When you give it too much information, especially negative stuff, it can get very tired.
Yeah, I noticed.
And here's the thing.
Sometimes those videos aren't even negative or meaningless, but they make me feel negative because I start comparing myself to people in them.
Like, why don't I have that?
Why am I not doing that?
I get it.
That's another danger of being online too much.
So now that you know the problem, what did you learn?
I'm more careful about what I watch now.
I only watch or read things that are good for me.
How do you decide if something's good for you?
I ask myself, will this help me improve myself or my life?
If the answer is no, I skip it.
Smart.
I do the same thing.
So, our first lesson is about information.
Keep your mind healthy by choosing well.
You don't need to know everything.
Yeah.
Only let in what feeds you, and your brain will thank you.
Speaking of healthy, let's talk about health in general.
We all know health is important, Gwen.
Do you really?
Because you still stay up late every night working.
Ugh, I don't want to, but I need to finish my work.
That's how I earn money.
We all need money to live well, don't we?
True, work and money are important.
But your health?
Even more important.
I mean, I think they're equally important.
Think about it this way.
Money can buy medicine or pay hospital bills, but it can't buy back your energy.
When you're sick, everything becomes harder.
Even something simple like washing dishes feels very hard.
You're right, and medicine can't make you better right away.
Exactly.
When you're healthy, everything else gets easier.
You think better, work better, feel better.
So health really is number one.
I get your point now.
I didn't take care of my health enough in 2025.
So what'll you do in 2026?
Well, I think I'll start with the basic things like sleep enough, eat better, exercise every day.
They are easy to do, but very helpful.
That's it.
Very simple.
So take care of your body first and everything else will follow.
All right.
Next lesson.
Another big lesson I learned in 2025 is to stay quiet.
That can help us grow better.
Interesting.
How does staying quiet help you grow?
Well, I used to tell everyone everything I wanted to do.
Things like my plans, my goals, all of it.
I'd tell people or post about them online.
But then I saw something strange.
What's strange?
The more I talked, the less I did.
Oh, I really feel that.
It's because you're using all your energy talking instead of doing.
Right.
And also, not everyone needs to know what you're working on.
Some people might give you their opinions.
Sometimes they say good things about your plans.
But sometimes their opinions aren't really good.
Their words can make you question yourself.
That can really hurt your confidence.
That's exactly what I meant.
So now I stay quiet and just do the work.
When I talk less, I can hear myself better.
You know, like I can understand what I really want, not what other people want.
That makes sense.
You don't need to show anything to anyone.
Just think about getting better, quietly.
That's my plan for 2026.
I hope you all can try it too.
I hope you can remember the next lesson too.
Emotions really do decide what happens.
That's another thing I learned in 2025.
How can emotions decide what happens?
Think about it.
When we lose control of our emotions, we usually say or do things we feel sorry about later.
Because, you know, it's not us who are talking or taking actions.
It's our emotions.
Yeah, that's true.
I used to make bad decisions when I wasn't calm.
Exactly.
One minute of anger can destroy a chance.
One calm decision can save your whole plan.
I know.
Like last month, someone said something really rude to me.
I almost sent back an angry message.
But you didn't?
Luckily, no.
I waited.
I took a deep breath.
Like, just 10 seconds.
Then I answered calmly.
How did that feel?
It felt so much better.
I felt in control.
And the problem actually got fixed instead of becoming a bigger mess.
Yeah, that's the power of staying calm.
When emotions go up, you can't think clearly.
But when you stop and give your brain a moment, everything becomes clearer.
So next time your emotions want to take over, slow down and breathe.
Give your mind time to calm down.
Mm-hmm.
Calmness is your power.
Use it.
So, now that you know emotions can affect your actions and your results, what would you do in a really difficult situation?
Yeah, would you smile, get angry?
Or react in a completely different way?
Let us know in the comments below.
Okay, let's move to the next lesson from 2025.
It's about learning.
What did you learn?
I learned that less is more.
Oh, I love this one.
Tell me more.
So I used to try learning everything at once.
I'd watch like 10 videos on different topics in one day.
And did you actually remember any of it?
Not really.
My brain just felt, um, too much.
Like I had all this information but couldn't use any of it.
That's the problem.
Learning too much too fast doesn't help you understand well.
What is the point of knowing many things if you can't really use them?
Right.
That's why less is more.
I learn less but better.
I work on one thing instead of ten, and I practice until I really get it.
Yes.
Like when you're learning a language, let's say English, don't try to learn 12 tenses at once.
Yeah, just start with the simple ones.
Like the present simple or past simple.
Using simple tenses doesn't make you think too much.
That helps you communicate better.
That's right.
You can say, I drink coffee every morning.
It helps me a lot.
Instead of, I've been drinking coffee every morning and it has helped me a lot.
Slowly you'll get more comfortable using those tenses and start using them in real conversations more often.
That's how you remember things for a long time.
Once the simple tenses become easy for you, you can move to the harder ones.
Quality over quantity, right?
Right.
Knowing one thing well is always better than knowing many things.
Not so well.
So, friends, just focus on one thing first, learn it well, and then go to the next level.
It's time for the next thing I learned in 2025.
It's about discipline.
We all need discipline to become better.
But the truth is, discipline is only good if we use the right kind, the gentle kind.
Gentle?
I always thought discipline should be hard.
That's what most people think.
But gentle discipline is different.
And the best thing about it is that it works better.
Sounds cool.
I'm all ears.
So gentle discipline means you make yourself do things in a softer and kinder way.
It's when you do something because you want to get better, not because you have to.
Interesting.
I feel like it changes how you see your tasks.
They're now not something scary or forced anymore.
There's no punishment.
Right.
You're doing it because you care about yourself.
There's kindness in gentle discipline.
And when you're kind to yourself, it's much easier to keep going.
Well, yeah, Gwen's right.
So if you didn't use gentle discipline in 2025, let's make it part of your 2026.
Follow your plans, but also kinder to yourself.
Before we move on to another interesting lesson, let's take a short break.
Drink some water and move around a bit to relax your body.
All done?
Great.
All right.
Are you ready?
Let's continue.
Next lesson, the people around us.
Oh, this is really important.
People really do affect our energy.
Yeah, some people take away your energy just by sitting next to you.
And sometimes they don't even mean to do it.
But they're just so negative and I just feel tired after being with them too long.
That's because energy moves from person to person.
Negativity spreads.
But positivity can do that too.
I know I have many friends who give me energy.
After talking to them, I feel like I can do anything.
Those are the people you need to keep close.
They help you move forward.
But it's hard sometimes, you know?
What if the negative person is someone you've known for years?
Then you have a choice.
You can love them from a distance, but you don't have to let them into your daily life.
Yeah, that makes sense.
I mean, after all, energy isn't unlimited.
We should always protect it.
That's so true.
People can lift you up or hold you back.
Choose wisely.
Um, speaking of people, one big thing I learned in 2025 is to depend on myself...
I'm glad you said this.
Too many people wait for others to help them, like they're waiting for Superman to save the day.
But Superman only lives in movies, right?
I learned this the hard way.
Nobody is coming to save us.
If we keep waiting, we'll just miss chances or feel sad.
Right.
So let's depend on ourselves, not others.
Yeah, and I saw that when I do things myself, I get stronger and better.
Of course you do.
We learn by doing.
Even if we fail, we still learn.
That's how we grow and improve.
And the more we do something, the more confident we become.
Do you see how good that is, friends?
Asking for help is fine, but don't wait for it.
That's right.
The help might come late or it might not be what you need.
What is the best thing you can do?
Do it yourself.
Stand on your own and don't wait for someone to save you.
All right.
The next lesson from my 2025 is about speed.
We should all slow down.
I think this one is for me, because I always feel like I need to do more, be faster, get more, you know.
I do.
But here's what I learned.
Slowing down actually helps us reach places faster.
That sounds funny.
I want to know why it's possible.
Well, going fast isn't always the best way.
When you go too fast, you might miss important things.
Like what?
Like the signs telling you you're going the wrong way, or the small things that really matter.
For example, when you drive fast on the road, you can miss a sign and go the wrong way.
It is the same with learning English.
How?
Some people want to learn fast, so they listen to very hard lessons.
But the lessons are too hard for them, so they end up learning very little.
Hmm.
I never thought about it like that.
When you slow down, you understand things better.
So, new English learners should listen to this podcast, right?
It's interesting but also very simple and easy to understand, totally suitable for beginners.
That's right.
Listening to this podcast can really help people learn English well.
Hmm, that makes sense.
I guess being fast doesn't always win.
Right?
Being fast means nothing if you don't get to the right place.
Sometimes the best thing to do is to stop, look around carefully, then continue.
Now for the last thing we learned in 2025.
It's about focus.
Oh man, focus.
That's my weak point.
I really need to get better at this.
It's simple, Leo.
You just need to focus on one thing.
Why is that better?
Why shouldn't we focus on many things?
If we do ten things at the same time, we finish faster.
Then we can go to bed early.
Isn't that great?
You love your bed more than I expected, Leo.
Well, that makes me feel comfy, you know.
Alright.
Back to the main point.
Okay.
So, why do we focus on one thing?
Because you only have so much brain power.
You can't give 100% to many things at the same time.
If you try to give your attention to too many things, your brain gets too tired and stops working.
In the end, you can't focus on anything.
Yeah, that's so true.
I always feel lost when I try doing too many things at once.
I usually end up making mistakes.
Focus on just one thing, Leo.
That way, your mind stays light, clear, and strong.
Even when I have many things to do?
Yes.
If there are many tasks, just do things one by one.
Finish one task, then start the next.
Does that make me slow?
No.
When you focus on one thing, you do it well.
That way, you don't waste time fixing mistakes.
So, focusing on one thing actually helps you work faster and better.
That's the best way to do your tasks.
I couldn't agree more.
Alright, time to finish for today, my friends.
We talked about a lot of interesting things, didn't we?
10 Lessons from 2025
Yeah, let's recap them quickly before saying goodbye.
To become a better person, there are a few things you should do.
First, remember to choose your information well.
Put your health first.
And if you want to grow, do it quietly.
Don't forget to stay calm when emotions go up.
Learn things well instead of learning too much.
Always be gentle with yourself.
Stay around positive people.
Stand on your own.
Slow down to see clearly.
And finally, focus on one thing at a time.
You know what?
I think 2026 should be about choosing less, but choosing better.
I love that.
Pick a few things that really matter and let go of the other things.
Yeah, fewer goals, better quality of life, less is more, right?
That's right.
So, remember this.
When you keep it simple, you become stronger.
For everyone listening, think about this.
What is one thing from today you want to try?
Share it with us in the comments below.
Maybe it's protecting your energy, slowing down, or just working on one goal instead of ten.
Whatever it is, try it.
You don't have to change everything right away.
Just one small step is enough.
And hey, if you enjoyed this episode, don't forget to like and subscribe for more content like this.
Share it with a friend who needs to hear this.
Yeah, we're all in this together, trying to get better.
Thanks for listening, everyone.
This is Podcast and Chill.
I'm Gwen.
And I'm Leo.
See you next time.
