Episode 16 — Technology in Daily Life
Beginner+ • 8:39 • 2025-09-09
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You're listening to Mr. English Podcast by Mr. English Podcast. Hey everyone, welcome back to the Mr. English Podcast. I'm John and I'm Jessica. Thanks for tuning in. Today we've got a really fun topic because honestly, it's something all of us use every single day. Technology. Yep. Technology in daily life. Smartphones. laptops, apps, social media, basically everything we rely on to survive. Survive. Okay, maybe not survive, but it feels like it, right? I mean, try living one day without Wi-Fi. That's impossible. I'd feel lost. So, let's start with this. What's the very first piece of technology you touch in the morning? Hm. My alarm clock, which is my phone, of course. Same here. I set three alarms on my phone. Sometimes I still oversleep. Three alarms? Why not just wake up at the first one? Because I never do. The first alarm is to wake me up. The second is to make sure I didn't go back to sleep. And the third one? Well, the third one is just in case. That's ridiculous. I only set one alarm and usually I wake up before it rings. Wow, you're one of those magical morning people. Not magical, just disciplined. Okay. After you wake up, what's next? Do you check your phone right away? I try not to, but let's be honest. Most mornings I unlock my phone and scroll through Instagram or check my messages. See, you made fun of me earlier, but you're the same. True, I can't deny it. But I at least make coffee first sometimes. What about you? Oh, no. I check my phone before I even get out of bed. Sometimes I just lie there for 20 minutes. That's so bad. Do you feel tired afterwards? Yeah, definitely. But it's like my brain wants to know what's happening in the world before I move. It's interesting how our daily routines are shaped by technology. Like before smartphones, people would wake up and maybe read a newspaper or just eat breakfast. Yeah. Now we wake up and immediately stare at a tiny glowing screen. So, after the morning scroll, my phone basically controls the rest of my day, too. [Laughter] Oh, no. Here we go. Seriously, I use it for work emails, video calls, even my to-do list. Without it, I'd forget half of what I'm supposed to do. Yeah, me too. I use a calendar app to remember meetings and deadlines. Sometimes I even set reminders like, "Don't forget to drink water." Wait, you set an alarm to drink water. Don't judge me. It helps. Otherwise, I realize it's 6:00 p.m. and I've only had one glass all day. Fair point. Technology does help us stay healthy, or at least pretend to. Speaking of health, do you use any fitness apps? I downloaded like five of them. And do you use them? I opened one once.
That doesn't count. Hey, at least I had good intentions. What about you? I use a step counter app. It tracks how many steps I take. If I see a low number at the end of the day, I go for a short walk just to make it look better. Oh, so you're motivated by the numbers. Exactly. It feels like a little game. That's the thing about technology. It makes everything a little more addictive. Oh, yes. Like social media. I'll just check Instagram for 5 minutes and suddenly it's an hour later. Same with YouTube. I go there to watch one video about, say, cooking pasta and somehow end up watching documentaries about space. The algorithm knows you too well. Do you ever try to limit your screen time? My phone actually gives me a report every Sunday. It tells me how many hours I spent on different apps. And do you like what you see? No, it's always more than I expected. Like, you spent 12 hours on Instagram this week. Wow. 12 hours? That's like half a part-time job. Don't remind me. You know what's funny? The way we're talking right now, this is actually how you, our listeners, can talk about your technology habits in English. Exactly. You don't need big complicated sentences. You can start really simple. For example, just say, I usually check my phone in the morning. Or, I spend a lot of time on social media. That's a super common one. And if you want to talk about problems, you can say things like, "My internet is slow." or "My phone battery dies so fast." Oh, yes. I say that almost every day. My battery is dead again. Same here. Another good way is to talk about apps. For example, I use WhatsApp to chat with my friends or I use Google Maps when I travel, right? Or I watch Netflix in the evenings or I listen to podcasts while cooking. Hey, like this one. Exactly. So, listeners, when you're thinking about your own routine, just pick one or two apps and describe how you use them. And don't forget opinions. You can say, "I think technology makes life easier." Or the opposite. Sometimes technology makes me stressed. Yeah. Like when my internet crashes right before a meeting. Oh, that's the worst. So, the pattern is simple. Habits, problems, apps, opinions. Right. That's like your little toolbox for talking about technology in English. Okay. So, let's imagine you're talking to someone about technology. How can you ask questions? Super simple. You could ask, "What apps do you use the most?" Or, "Do you prefer Android or iPhone?" Here's another. How many hours do you spend online every day? And my favorite. Do you ever take a break from technology? Let's role play one. John, what app do you use the most? H probably YouTube. I spend way too much time watching videos. Same here. But for me, it's Instagram. I just scroll and scroll. And that's how you can keep the conversation going. Ask, answer, then share your own habits. It feels natural, like chatting with a friend. And that's exactly what you want when speaking English. So technology, it's everywhere in our lives. Think about how you use it and try sharing that in English with someone this week. Even just one sentence is a great start. We hope you enjoyed listening to us today. Thanks for being here with us. We'll see you next time on the Mr. English podcast.