Mimic and/or Shadow with the Audio. Extend your “Input” into “Output”.
Pay Special Attention to:
Your pronunciation
The pauses
The tone
The stress
The emotions
Review the terms and expressions and the usage examples for better understanding. You can also read the English translation for reference.
Terms and Expressions:
平庸 (píngyōng) is often used to describe people, work, or life that is dull, average, or uninspired — not necessarily bad, but definitely not outstanding either.
Here are a few examples:
她害怕失败，最后选择了一条平庸而安全的路。
Tā hàipà shībài, zuìhòu xuǎnzé le yì tiáo píngyōng ér ānquán de lù.
Afraid of failing, she settled for a safe but mediocre path.
如果你害怕冒险，就只能接受平庸的生活。
Rúguǒ nǐ hàipà màoxiǎn, jiù zhǐnéng jiēshòu píngyōng de shēnghuó.
If you’re afraid to take risks, you’ll have to settle for an ordinary life.
无所作为 (wú suǒ zuò wéi) Literally: “nothing to accomplish” Meaning: To be inactive, do nothing meaningful, or fail to take action when one should. Often used to describe someone who has power or responsibility but does not take initiative.
Here are a few examples:
他当了一年的部门经理，却一直无所作为。
Tā dāng le yì nián de bùmén jīnglǐ, què yīzhí wú suǒ zuò wéi.
He was the department manager for a year but never really did anything.
The government can't just sit back and do nothing about this kind of corruption.
遁走 (dùnzǒu) means to flee, escape, or slip away—often suddenly and in a somewhat sneaky or urgent manner. It’s a formal or literary word, often found in classical Chinese or written narratives.
Here are a few examples:
贼人发现事情败露，连夜遁走。
Zéirén fāxiàn shìqíng bàilù, liányè dùnzǒu.
The thief realized he’d been exposed and fled in the middle of the night.
. 他趁乱遁走，没人注意到他。
Tā chèn luàn dùnzǒu, méi rén zhùyì dào tā.
He slipped away during the chaos—no one even noticed.
Transcript with English Translation (Machine translated with some editing)
Ordinary ≠ Mediocre Being ordinary doesn’t mean being mediocre.
Mediocrity is drifting through life without purpose or achievement, but ordinariness is choosing to live with intention, even in the simplest of days. When it comes to everyday life, ordinary people approach it with care and effort, while mediocre people muddle through without direction. Looking to the future, ordinary people have the courage to face challenges head-on, while mediocre ones often hesitate, second-guess, or retreat. To accept being ordinary is to find peace and openness after striving; to settle for mediocrity is to shrink away from challenge out of fear and laziness. When someone truly embraces their ordinariness, they naturally begin to reject mediocrity.
You can flex your muscles by doing a Paraphrasing practice to round things up.
Still not sure how to do this practice? You can watch how to below:
