1 00:00:00,360 --> 00:00:06,879 Do yourself a favor. Stop studying English. Yeah, I said that me, 2 00:00:07,519 --> 00:00:13,279 your humble English teacher. In this podcast English Lesson, I'm going to 3 00:00:13,400 --> 00:00:21,239 explain why I suggest you stop studying English and what you can do instead to 4 00:00:21,480 --> 00:00:31,239 practice and improve your English. Let's jump in. Welcome to another Happy English 5 00:00:31,280 --> 00:00:36,039 podcast, coming to you from New York City. And here's your English teacher, 6 00:00:36,439 --> 00:00:41,600 Michael. All right, thank you John, and thanks everyone. It's 7 00:00:41,679 --> 00:00:47,280 Michael here from Happy English and I help people speak English better. And this 8 00:00:47,799 --> 00:00:55,840 is Happy English Podcast, Episode seven nineteen. Stop Studying English. Do you 9 00:00:56,000 --> 00:01:00,799 have questions like this, How can I improve my English? How can I 10 00:01:00,880 --> 00:01:06,920 practice speaking English by myself? How can I learn English more efficiently? And 11 00:01:06,959 --> 00:01:12,159 you'll notice I didn't say how can I learn English faster? I said more 12 00:01:12,400 --> 00:01:19,359 efficiently. Today, I want you to rethink what you do in English. 13 00:01:19,760 --> 00:01:26,280 I want you to move from the I study English to the I use English 14 00:01:26,439 --> 00:01:34,000 mindset. Here's how I study English versus I use English. Think about that 15 00:01:34,200 --> 00:01:41,879 for a moment. The mindset is totally different. I study English. The 16 00:01:41,920 --> 00:01:49,959 word study itself means using time and focus to gain knowledge about something. Study 17 00:01:51,480 --> 00:01:57,959 has the nuance of preparing now for some future use. Or application. I 18 00:01:59,200 --> 00:02:05,480 study English means I'm working hard now so that someday I will be able to 19 00:02:05,519 --> 00:02:10,240 communicate in English. Whenever I hear the words study, I feel like I'm 20 00:02:10,280 --> 00:02:16,759 getting ready for something in the future. I use English. That feels like 21 00:02:17,080 --> 00:02:23,439 I'm doing something now. It's a totally different mindset, isn't it. I 22 00:02:23,879 --> 00:02:30,520 use English. I read in English, I listen in English, I think 23 00:02:30,599 --> 00:02:36,199 in English, I speak in English, and I write in English. I 24 00:02:36,639 --> 00:02:42,400 use English. That sounds like right now, doesn't it? Now that you 25 00:02:42,599 --> 00:02:49,919 understand the difference between I study English and I use English, let me show 26 00:02:50,000 --> 00:02:54,879 you a few things that you can do right now today to shift your focus 27 00:02:54,919 --> 00:03:02,000 from study to use. One of the easiest and best ways to use English 28 00:03:02,680 --> 00:03:08,120 is to read. Now. I'm not talking about reading a huge novel like 29 00:03:08,599 --> 00:03:16,039 Harry Potter or Zen and The Art of Motorcycle Maintenance. Reads something anything you 30 00:03:16,199 --> 00:03:23,960 like and anything you are interested in, and do that a little bit every 31 00:03:23,159 --> 00:03:29,400 day. What's that you say you don't like reading? Let me tell you 32 00:03:29,439 --> 00:03:35,560 a quick story. One of my students I'll call her Snoopy to protect her 33 00:03:35,599 --> 00:03:40,360 privacy, basically told me that she doesn't like reading, and it's not her 34 00:03:40,479 --> 00:03:47,439 thing, But she pushes herself, steps out of her comfort zone and does 35 00:03:47,479 --> 00:03:53,680 a little bit of reading every day, either something from a book, a 36 00:03:53,680 --> 00:04:00,520 social media post, whatever. She makes sure that her eyes and brain connect 37 00:04:00,520 --> 00:04:06,159 to English every day. Even her phone's main language is set to English. 38 00:04:06,240 --> 00:04:13,960 And like I mentioned before, reading helps you use English. Reading helps you 39 00:04:14,360 --> 00:04:19,560 use grammar and vocabulary that you've already learned. That's called review. And it 40 00:04:19,600 --> 00:04:26,720 also helps you pick up new words and grammar patterns. And here's a tip. 41 00:04:27,519 --> 00:04:35,920 You can find over seventy thousand free ebooks free books online at a website 42 00:04:36,040 --> 00:04:46,040 called Project Gutenberg located at gutenberg dot org. Project Gutenberg is a place where 43 00:04:46,079 --> 00:04:53,839 you can download or read books online. Oh yeah, and it's free. 44 00:04:54,360 --> 00:05:00,240 Another way you can use English is with your ears. Thanks to the Internet, 45 00:05:00,600 --> 00:05:04,480 you can listen to anything you like in English, from podcasts like this 46 00:05:04,560 --> 00:05:12,040 one, social media videos, streaming TV series, and movies. The world 47 00:05:12,160 --> 00:05:17,040 is your oyster when it comes to listening. Here too find something you like. 48 00:05:17,800 --> 00:05:23,839 If you are interested in soccer also known as football, look for a 49 00:05:23,879 --> 00:05:29,160 YouTube channel where they talk about soccer, or find an Instagram account where they 50 00:05:29,240 --> 00:05:33,560 talk about soccer, or listen to a podcast where they talk about soccer or 51 00:05:33,800 --> 00:05:43,000 gardening, or cooking or baking bread or whatever peaks your interest. One podcast 52 00:05:43,040 --> 00:05:48,160 that I like where you can hear people using English in an energetic, fun 53 00:05:48,240 --> 00:05:57,120 and conversational way is the All Ears English podcast. All Ears English. That's 54 00:05:57,199 --> 00:06:02,079 the place where my friends Lindsey, Michelle and Aubrey focus on connection, not 55 00:06:02,279 --> 00:06:10,120 perfection, with real and natural English conversations. It's where they use English and 56 00:06:10,240 --> 00:06:15,279 help you learn to use English. The All Years English podcast has one point 57 00:06:15,319 --> 00:06:23,680 three million followers on Apple Podcasts and Spotify worldwide. They've been ranked number one 58 00:06:23,959 --> 00:06:30,040 in US Education language courses in Apple, and they've got five new episodes a 59 00:06:30,040 --> 00:06:36,480 week. This week's topics include the difference between call out to someone and call 60 00:06:36,600 --> 00:06:42,800 someone out, and how to connect with someone who has the same name in 61 00:06:42,839 --> 00:06:46,959 English. Sounds interesting, right? All you need to do is open your 62 00:06:47,000 --> 00:06:53,360 search bar right now, type in all Ears English and hit follow. They'll 63 00:06:53,399 --> 00:06:59,720 have you using and speaking better English in no time. And since you are 64 00:06:59,759 --> 00:07:03,959 now reading and listening to English, why not take out your notebook and write 65 00:07:04,000 --> 00:07:11,079 something. Writing in English is a great way to use the English you've already 66 00:07:11,160 --> 00:07:16,560 learned. Writing is output, even if you just write one or two sentences 67 00:07:16,639 --> 00:07:23,800 a day to start. That's something, and something is always better than nothing, 68 00:07:24,160 --> 00:07:28,759 isn't it. You can write about something you read or listened to. 69 00:07:29,680 --> 00:07:34,279 You can keep a journal or a diary. Keep your writing short, simple 70 00:07:34,600 --> 00:07:40,920 and casual. Write as if you were writing a text message to a friend 71 00:07:40,959 --> 00:07:47,360 about something you did or saw or heard. Lastly, and maybe most important 72 00:07:47,720 --> 00:07:53,759 is to speak English. Now. I know what you're thinking, Oh, 73 00:07:53,800 --> 00:07:59,480 Michael, I don't have anyone to talk to. Nobody speaks English around me. 74 00:08:00,399 --> 00:08:05,879 I get that. But let's not dwell on what you can't do. 75 00:08:05,759 --> 00:08:11,079 Let's look at what you can do. A can do attitude goes a long 76 00:08:11,160 --> 00:08:18,399 way in second language learning. My Japanese language teacher told me once that in 77 00:08:18,600 --> 00:08:24,639 order to improve my reading skills in Japanese, I need to believe that I 78 00:08:24,720 --> 00:08:30,519 can read. Believing that you can do something goes a long way to helping 79 00:08:30,560 --> 00:08:37,159 you actually do it. So go get a book, a website, a 80 00:08:37,200 --> 00:08:43,600 social post, anything, and read aloud. Reading with your voice helps you 81 00:08:43,759 --> 00:08:50,240 exercise your English mouth muscles. Sing a song in English. Singing helps your 82 00:08:50,279 --> 00:08:54,879 fluency, and it's fun. It also forces you to read faster if you 83 00:08:56,039 --> 00:09:00,480 sing while looking at the lyrics. You can also talk to your self and 84 00:09:00,559 --> 00:09:05,600 English. Use English to narrate your day, talk about what's on your mind, 85 00:09:05,879 --> 00:09:11,720 or make observations about the world around you. Doing this helps you practice 86 00:09:11,960 --> 00:09:18,000 anytime and anywhere. By the way, can you imagine getting the chance to 87 00:09:18,120 --> 00:09:24,320 practice this kind of English with me directly? You can get more practice using 88 00:09:24,360 --> 00:09:31,279 your English when you join my podcast Learner's Study Group. There you can make 89 00:09:31,360 --> 00:09:35,639 new friends, join us for live group coaching every week where we practice these 90 00:09:35,759 --> 00:09:43,919 podcast lessons together. Plus you get access to the pdf, transcript and audio 91 00:09:43,000 --> 00:09:50,559 download for every Happy English podcast in the past and in the future. And 92 00:09:50,679 --> 00:09:56,480 on top of that, each episode has exercises where you can practice these English 93 00:09:56,519 --> 00:10:01,480 points with speaking and writing checked by me. To learn more or to see 94 00:10:01,519 --> 00:10:07,039 some of the example sentences from this lesson, just visit Myhappy English dot com 95 00:10:07,039 --> 00:10:13,879 and choose podcast lesson seven nineteen. Remember, learning another language is not easy, 96 00:10:15,120 --> 00:10:20,159 but it's not impossible, and I'm here to help you on your journey. 97 00:10:20,399 --> 00:10:24,440 This podcast is brought to you by Happy English. Please visit Myhappy English 98 00:10:24,759 --> 00:10:30,600 dot com show your support for Happy English by leaving us a review. Get 99 00:10:30,639 --> 00:10:46,360 English, Get Happy, Happy English.