You're listening to Leaf Filter Radio and the guru of gutter protection himself, Chris Coonahan, is here to take your most pressing leaf-related questions.
Hey, everybody.
Chris here.
Understand we have Ron on the line.
Ron, where are you calling from?
Uh-oh.
Ron, are you calling from a ladder?
Well, I was.
I wanted to ask Chris what I need to do to get my gutters ready to have Leaf Filter installed.
Oh, Ron, you don't have to do anything.
A Leaf Filter trusted pro will come out and clean out your gutters, realign and seal your gutters and install Leaf Filter, America's number one gutter protection system.
So I didn't need to get on this ladder?
Ron, LeafFilter trusted pros are in your neighborhood and ready to help.
Just visit leaffilter.com slash day to schedule your free gutter inspection and get up to 30% off.
Thank goodness.
What was that site?
That's leaffilter.com slash day for your free gutter inspection today.
See representative for warranty details.
Promotion is 20% off plus a 10% senior or military discount.
One discount per household.
Hello my friends.
Welcome back to English Unleashed.
I'm Tom.
Today I want to share something very important with you.
Something that many learners forget when they study English.
It is the power of listening. and how listening is the real secret to speaking English well.
When we think about learning a language, most people immediately think about grammar.
They think about rules.
They think about vocabulary lists.
Of course, grammar and vocabulary and exams have their place.
They are important.
But they are not the heart of language learning.
The heart of language learning is listening, and listening is the path that always leads to speaking.
Think for a moment about when you were a baby.
As a baby, you did not open a grammar book.
You did not sit down and memorize hundreds of words.
You did not take tests or write essays.
Instead, you listened.
You listened to your parents.
You listened to your family and to the world around you.
You listened every single day for months and months before you spoke a single word.
And then, after a long period of listening, something almost magical happened.
The words began to come out of your mouth naturally.
They came out without effort, without fear, and without thinking about grammar rules.
This is the natural way of learning any language.
First, lots of listening and only then speaking.
But when we grow up and become adults, we forget this natural process.
We often try to learn in the opposite way.
We try to speak first before listening enough.
We open grammar books and we do written exercises.
We try to force the language into our heads with rules and drills.
This is not natural, it is not effective.
It feels heavy, it feels slow, and it often feels stressful.
This is why many adults feel stuck in their learning.
They know some grammar rules.
They know some English words.
But when they try to speak, nothing comes out.
They feel nervous.
They hesitate, and they cannot find the words.
The solution is simple.
We must go back to listening.
We must return to the natural order of learning.
Listening must become the center of your practice.
You should listen more than you study grammar, and listen more than you write.
If you give your brain enough listening input, speaking will follow.
It will not feel forced.
It will feel natural, just like it did when you were a child.
Now, maybe you are thinking, but Tom, listening is difficult.
And yes, at first it feels difficult.
Native speakers often talk very fast.
They connect their words together.
They use slang, idioms, and expressions that you do not know.
It feels confusing and sometimes it feels impossible.
But this is normal and it is nothing to worry about.
When you begin, you do not need to understand everything.
You do not need to translate every word into your own language.
You only need to listen.
You need to hear the sounds, you need to hear the rhythm, and you need to feel the music of English.
Think about music for a moment.
When you listen to a song, you do not translate every note in your mind.
You simply hear the sound and you let yourself feel it, okay?
Language is exactly the same.
When you listen again and again, your brain begins to notice patterns.
It begins to recognize sounds.
It begins to hear where words start and end.
It begins to understand rhythm and stress.
Slowly individual words become clearer.
Slowly sentences become easier to understand.
And slowly the language feels more natural.
This is why shadowing is such a powerful technique.
Shadowing combines listening with speaking at the same time.
You listen to the speaker and immediately you repeat what you hear.
You do not wait, you do not stop, and you do not translate.
You simply follow the sounds with your own voice.
This is something that I have talked about in previous episodes.
It is one of the best ways to make your speaking more natural.
Let me remind you how shadowing works step by step.
Step 1.
Choose simple audio.
It should not be too difficult for you.
If it is too advanced, you will feel lost and frustrated.
The perfect audio is something where you understand about 70%.
This way it is not too easy, but it is also not too hard.
Step 2.
Listen to it once without speaking.
Just listen, do not write, do not repeat.
Let yourself get the feeling, the flow and the rhythm of language.
Step 3.
Listen again and this time shadow.
As you listen, copy the words immediately.
Do not stop, do not think, and do not worry about mistakes.
Simply follow the sound.
Step 4.
Repeat many times.
Repetition is the key to success in language learning.
The first time always feels strange.
The second time already feels a little better.
By the third or fourth time, it begins to feel easier.
And after many repetitions, it feels natural and automatic.
If you do this every day, even for just 10 or 20 minutes, your English will transform.
Your English will change.
Your ear will become stronger and your mouth will become faster.
Your confidence will grow, so you will build self-confidence.
You will start to speak more quickly, more smoothly and with much less hesitation.
You will not pause.
So, do not wait for perfect grammar.
Do not wait until you know every single word.
Start listening and shadowing today.
Make it your daily habit.
Listen while you walk.
Listen while you drive.
Listen before you sleep.
Even 10 or 20 minutes a day makes a difference.
Remember, language learning is not about speed.
It is about habits.
A small habit, repeated every day, becomes powerful.
Listening is that habit.
Shadowing is that habit.
Do it daily and it will change your English.
So, let me end with three simple messages.
First, listen more.
Make listening the heart of your study.
Not grammar, not writing, but listening.
Second, shadow often.
Shadow simple audio.
Repeat it many times and don't worry about mistakes.
Third, be patient.
Give yourself time, trust the process, and believe in the power of listening.
Thank you so much for listening to English Unleashed.
I'm Tom, and I can't wait to see your progress.
Until next time, keep listening.
Keep practicing and keep believing in yourself.
Bye for now.
