Introducing the Shadowing Technique for English Learning

In this episode, I welcome Clare Whitmell from the Smart English Coach Podcast back to the Express to Impress Podcast. We explore how cultural intelligence shapes job interviews with American companies. 

We delve into cultural maps by Erin Meyer, which unveil differences in communication styles, decision-making, and more across countries. Discover how to navigate these nuances and impress interviewers with your adaptability. Tune in to gain insights that could be the game-changer for your next interview. 

This is part one of our conversation. Tune in next time to hear the rest of our conversation!

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Clare's website: smartenglishcoach.com

Enroll in my Organized Speaking Program by August 31.

Read the transcript here. 

Join the Express to Impress community on LinkedIn.

Get my Job Interview Preparation Checklist.

Listen to my episode, How to Be Confident in an Interview.

Original theme music by Lucas Knutter 

Join me as I welcome special guest Clare Whitmell, an English teacher and coach with a passion for boosting language fluency and confidence.

In this episode, Clare unravels the roles of fluency and grammar in language learning, sharing effective strategies to enhance your speaking skills. Discover how to strike the perfect balance between accuracy and fluency to become a confident communicator in any language. 

Whether you're a seasoned language learner or just starting your journey, this episode has something valuable for you! Tune in now and unlock the secrets to meaningful language practice and a mindset shift that leads to increased speaking confidence.

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Please take a minute to rate and review the podcast wherever you’re listening.

Clare's website: smartenglishcoach.com

My Organized Speaking Program: express-to-impress.com/communication-skills-training/

Original theme music by Lucas Knutter 

Read the transcript here. 

Join the Express to Impress community on LinkedIn.

Get my Job Interview Preparation Checklist.

In the second half of my interview with Communication Coach Mike Acker, he said something I see all the time with my clients. He said, “If you have your nonverbals misaligned with your verbals, you’re going to be overpowering your verbal content. I’ve seen that again and again. Where people say, “I’m excited to be here.” But they don’t sound excited. They don’t look excited.” 

Nonverbal communication often isn’t taught in English classrooms, just like pronunciation isn’t. But these are both important aspects of communicating in English effectively! I invite you to tune into my episode with Mike for three great nonverbal communication tips at https://www.express-to-impress.com/nonverbal-communication/.

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Please take a minute to rate and review the podcast wherever you’re listening.

Visit Mike’s website here.

Original theme music by Lucas Knutter 

Read the transcript here. 

Join the Express to Impress community on LinkedIn.

Get my Job Interview Preparation Checklist.

🎧 I’m happy to share my conversation with the charismatic Mike Acker on the latest episode of the Express to Impress podcast! 🎉

🗣️ In this engaging episode, we delved deep into the world of confident communication, particularly in American business settings. Mike, a communication coach and author, shared his inspiring journey as a communication coach, author, and TEDx Speaker. We explored his unique background and experiences living in Mexico, where he overcame language barriers and adapted to a new culture. His story of resilience and embracing his identity is truly remarkable. We also had some fun exchanging embarrassing stories of our communication mistakes! 😅

🎶🎧So, grab your headphones, tune in, and join us on this journey to confident communication. You'll walk away with practical insights and feel empowered! 🚀

The second part of our conversation will be released in the next episode. 


Please take a minute to rate and review the podcast wherever you’re listening.

Original theme music by Lucas Knutter 

Read the transcript here. 

Join the Express to Impress community on LinkedIn.

Get my Job Interview Preparation Checklist.

Want to use more common sayings while speaking in English?  Tune into the latest Express to Impress Podcast episode to learn 8 Common Phrasal Verbs and Idioms for everyday conversations. 

This episode follows the previous episodes, How to Improve Your Listening Skills With Movies With Cara Leopold and Listening Expert Shares How to Understand More of the English Language. If you haven't checked out those episodes yet, you won't want to miss them! 

When you use these common sayings in everyday conversations, you’ll connect better with native English speakers. 

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Read the transcript here.

Join the Express to Impress community on LinkedIn.

Learn how to use the Shadowing Technique.

Original theme music by Lucas Knutter

I invite you to tune in to hear the rest of my conversation with Listening Expert Cara Leopold with Leo Listening.

This time, we talk about how to get used to different accents and speaking speeds and motivate yourself to learn a language for work or school even if you don't want to. You'll also learn what to do if your language learning has stalled, bad habits language learners pick up when learning a language in a traditional classroom setting, reductions and linking, and how to improve your English skills by joining a movie club.

Here are a couple of excerpts from our conversation:

"The irony is that it's usually the words that you already know that cause the most problems."

"People resent it (the English language), and I understand that because it's imposed on a lot of people, and obviously, we can't expect everyone to be excited about learning it. So I totally understand those feelings, which are valid. I think then, if you can't get excited about English, what can you get excited about? What interests you, in general?"

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Please take a minute to rate and review the podcast.

Original theme music by Lucas Knutter 

Read the transcript here. 

Join the Express to Impress community on LinkedIn.

Get my Job Interview Preparation Checklist.

Familiarize yourself with different English accents by visiting the International Dialects of English Archive (IDEA) website.

Learn more about Cara’s Movie Club.

Watch Rachel’s series: 100 Most Common Words in American English.

Boost your language skills and gain friends with the Language TV Club.

Get ready for a special treat! In this episode, I talk with Cara Leopold, an English Teacher known as the Listening Expert. We covered a lot of topics, so this will be the first of two episodes with our conversation. The main theme of our conversation was building great listening skills in another language. In this first episode, we talk about the importance of listening when learning another language, including pronunciation, and what to do when you don’t understand your colleagues in meetings.  Here are some gems from this episode:

“People might think, “I spend most of my time speaking.” But listening is actually the skill that dominates. So by that logic, the foundation for also learning future languages should be listening.”

“So what’s really helped me to get fluent in French is observing what people say, understanding them, and then copying them.”

“Notice the expressions that people keep using and then use them. You will sound more authentic because you'll be using what the people around you actually say, as opposed to what you read in a book or what you got out of a list of 100 idioms.”

Tune in to get more valuable insights from Cara, so you’ll understand more of what people say around you! The second part of our conversation will be released in the next episode. 

Read the transcript here. 

Join the Express to Impress community on LinkedIn.

Please take a minute to rate and review the podcast.

Original theme music by Lucas Knutter 

Want to use more common sayings while speaking in English?  Tune into the latest Express to Impress Podcast episode to learn ten common sayings for everyday conversations. 

This episode is a follow-up to the previous episode, Word Choice in Journalism and Business with Steven Youngblood. If you haven’t checked out that episode yet, you won’t want to miss it! 

When you use these common sayings in everyday conversations, you’ll connect better with native English speakers. 

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Read the transcript here.

Join the Express to Impress community on LinkedIn.

Learn how to use the Shadowing Technique.

Have an interview coming up? 

• Check out my 5 Tips for Interviewing in English.
• Watch my 90-minute online video course, “How to Succeed in a Job Interview.”  (Get 15% off with the coupon code podcast15)
• Work with me one-on-one for a mock interview.

Original theme music by Lucas Knutter

How you tell a story matters.

The way you talk about why you lost your job can cost you a potential one. The way you explain the reason for layoffs can cause panic among employees and stakeholders. And the way journalists report the news can incite violence.

Framing, including word choice,  is one of the most important areas peace journalists discuss and develop.

To find out what business professionals could learn from peace journalists about storytelling, I invited Steven Youngblood, Director of the Center for Global Peace Journalism at Park University, for a conversation on The Express to Impress Podcast. 

Here are some excerpts from our conversation;

“The question should never be, do we withhold the information? The question should be, how do we convey the information?”

“If you want to be an informed person in 2022, it is going to take an effort. So the first thing I tell my students is not to depend on social media for their news. This, despite the fact that study data shows that's exactly where they get their news from.”

Tune in to get more valuable insights from Steven, so you're well prepared to tell stories about challenging events.

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Original theme music by Lucas Knutter 

Read the transcript here. 

Join the Express to Impress community on LinkedIn.

Cited in the episode:

Center for Global Peace Journalism

Steven's Peace Journalism Insights blog

Steven’s book, Professor Komagum

Steven’s book, Peace Journalism Principles and Practices

Want to use more natural expressions when you speak English? Tune into the latest Express to Impress Podcast episode to learn English sayings for everyday conversations. Specifically, you’ll learn six idioms, phrases, adjectives, and adverbs. 

This episode is a follow-up to the previous episode, Less is More: Tips for Effective International Business Communication.

When you use these English sayings in everyday conversations, you’ll connect better with native English speakers. 

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Read the transcript here.

Join the Express to Impress community on LinkedIn.

Learn more about my online course, How to Land Your Next Job, and watch free previews. Get 15% off the cost with the coupon code podcast15.

Learn how to use the Shadowing Technique.

Original theme music by Lucas Knutter