هر روز انگلیسی یاد بگیرید، بدون بهانه

LEARN ENGLISH EVERY DAY. NO EXCUSES!

Hi, everyone!

I’m Georgiana, founder of

SpeakEnglishPodcast.com. My mission is to help YOU to speak English fluently.

In this episode:

• I’ll talk about a Japanese technique called Kaizen. It’s hard to be constant when you have a long-time project like learning English. This technique will help you to study English every day, and it will prevent you from procrastinating.

• Later you’ll practice your speaking skills with a new fun question and answer story.

What in the world is Kaizen? You may be asking yourselves.

Kaizen is a Japanese word which can be translated as “Continuous Improvement.”

The concept of continuous improvement has been around for thousands of years in the Japanese culture.

Here’s the thing, sometimes we want to achieve essential goals or make significant changes to our habits.

It’s when we get excited, and we start taking massive action.

We start going to the gym five days a week or studying English several hours every day.

This is easy when we begin since we’re motivated and we have strong determination. Novelty gives us that feeling.

Taking massive action can be positive sometimes.

Unfortunately, many times it can become counterproductive.

This mindset is prevalent among the western culture.

We like finding big solutions to big problems.

The best way to reach your goal is to start using a better and more efficient method.

So, you already have chosen your goal. That’s easy to do. You’ve decided that you want to speak English fluently.

What’s tricky is maintaining your enthusiasm until reaching your goal.

Don’t try to make radical changes in a short amount of time, make small improvements every day.

These small steps will gradually lead to your aim.

Each day, just focus on getting 1% better. In your case, just focus on improving your English skills by 1% every day.

It might not seem like much, but those 1% improvements start compounding on each other.

For example, we all know that it’s hard to keep on doing the same routine every day.

But it can also be fun. That’s why you should choose your material carefully. It shouldn’t be difficult or tedious. And most of all don’t let your lack of time become an excuse. Start with ten or even 5 minutes per day.

Why Kaizen works?

When you improve a little each day, eventually great things occur.

Not tomorrow, not the next day, but in the end, you achieve something significant.

Sadly, many English students spend years looking for the perfect method. They’re looking for that big trick that will make them speak English with fluency from one day to another.

Instead, the Kaizen way reminds you to focus on your primary task and do a little every day.

“You already know what you need to do. Get to work and find small ways to improve along the way.”

Start small and make your increases gradual. Avoid the temptation of getting impatient. Don’t start rushing forward and taking bigger leaps. Take it slow, steady, and be consistent.

Now let’s try to apply the Kaizen philosophy to this specific example. Let’s say you only spend 10 minutes reading ten pages a day. You can do that just before going to bed. It’s only 10 minutes.

Now, let’s do some math. Ten pages per day, that’s 300 pages in a month. Not bad, huh?

Let’s keep running the math. In one year, you would read twelve books, and in 5 years, 60 books!!! Can you imagine that? Can you picture how many words, expressions, grammar structures you could learn?

You could also start writing three pages per day, listen 15 minutes in the morning and 15 in the afternoon, or even speak English for 10 minutes every day. It’s up to you.

If you’re curious to know more about the Kaizen way, there are many books on this topic. I can recommend you “A small step can change your life,” by Robert Maurer. Maybe you could read it, a few pages a day, in English :)

Mini Story 📖

(Practice your Speaking)

Ok, let’s move on to the next section.

Here, I will use the Question & Answer technique.

This is the perfect lesson for automatizing your spoken English. This is how it works: • I’ll give you some information. (A phrase or two).

• I’ll ask simple questions.

• After each question, there will be some seconds of silence:

It’s your turn to answer the question!

Just try to give an easy and short answer, not a complex one.

• After you answer, I’ll give you a correct answer.

This process will continue and little by little; I’ll be telling a story using questions and answers.

Let’s start!

Joe was a very lazy guy with no energy.

Who was a lazy guy?

Joe. He was a very lazy guy.

Was Joe lazy or active?

Lazy. He wasn’t active. He was very lazy.

Did he have any energy?

No. He didn’t have any energy.

Joe was very active, right?

No. Not at all. He wasn’t active. He was very lazy.

Was Joe a guy or a guide?

A guy. A man. Not a guide. And he didn’t guide anyone either.

His doctor advised him to do at least 30 minutes of ⛹exercise a day.

Did Joe need to rest for 30 minutes every day?

No. On the contrary. He needed to exercise. Not rest His mother advised him to exercise every day.

Right?

No. His mother didn’t advise him. It was his doctor who told him to exercise at least 30 minutes every day.

Whose doctor advised Joe to exercise?

His doctor. Joe’s doctor advised him to do exercise.

Did the doctor need to exercise every day at least 30 minutes?

No. Not the doctor. Joe. He was the one who needed to exercise.

How many minutes did Joe need to exercise every day?

Joe needed to exercise at least 30 minutes every day.

Joe decided to apply a #Japanese philosophy called Kaizen. He started walking 1 minute a day.

Did Joe decide to go 🏄surfing every day?

No. He didn’t decide to go surfing every day. He decided to follow the Kaizen way.

Joe decided to walk for 10 minutes every day.

Right?

No. Not 10 minutes. He’s started walking only 1 minute a day.

Did he decide to follow a Japanese philosophy?

Yes. He’s started to follow the Kaizen philosophy which comes from Japan.

Has he started learning Japanese?

No. He’s not learning Japanese but he’s following a Japanese method called Kaizen.

Who decided to start walking for 1 minute a day?

Joe. Joe has started walking 1 minute a day. He’s following an oriental method called Kaizen.

In one month, he managed to🚶walk 30 minutes a day. After 6 months, he has started 🏃running for 1 ⏱hour a day.

How many minutes can Joe walk after one month?

30 minutes. He can walk for 30 minutes.

Who can walk 30 minutes a day? Alex?

Joe. I don’t know who Alex is. It’s Joe who can walk 30 minutes a day.

Can Joe run in the first month?

No. Joe can’t run in the first month. He can walk for 30 minutes though.

Joe can run for 10 hours after 6 months. Right?

No. Not 10 hours. After 6 months Joe can run 1 hour a day.

Can Joe walk after 6 months?

Yes. He can walk after 6 months. He can also run.

He can run one hour a day.

After one year, he participated in a 🏃marathon and finished it with no effort.

Did Joe visit Manhattan after one year?

No. Joe didn’t visit Manhattan after one year. He participated in a marathon.

After how many years did Joe participate in a marathon?

After one year. Joe participated in a marathon after one year.

Who participated in a marathon after one year?

Joe. He has participated in a marathon after one year.

Was the marathon too tiring for Joe?

No. The marathon wasn’t too tiring. He finished with no effort.

Did the Kaizen method help Joe become active?

Yes. The Kaizen method helped Joe become very active. He has just finished his first marathon!

Look at Joe! He’s amazing! One year ago, he didn’t have any energy at all. He couldn’t even walk for 30 minutes. Now he’s ended up running marathons!

That’s the power of Kaizen, and yes, you can also apply it to learn English or to anything you wish.

It’s the end of this short lesson. I really hope that you’ve enjoyed this story.

By the way, this is one of the techniques that I use in my English courses. I recommend you to take a look at: Courses.SpeakEnglishPodCast.com

Awesome! This is the end of this episode. Remember to listen to it several times. It will help with your English.

I strongly recommend you to visit my website SpeakEnglishPodcast.com and get today’s episode transcript.

See you soon and have a wonderful week! Bye! Bye!