Describe a positive change in your life Cue Card IELTS
IELTS Cue Card Topic
Describe a positive change in your life (Answered in Past Tense)
You should say:
What the change was? (Answered in Past Tense)
When it happened? (Answered in Past Tense)
How it happened? (Answered in Past Tense)
And explain why it was a positive change. (Answered in Past Tense)
Sample Answer 1 (Weight Loss Idea)
Introduction
There is no denying this conviction that there is only one constant thing: change. It has the potential to make or break our lives.
On the one hand, a negative change puts our life in a lean patch, whereas a positive change helps us experience a purple patch.
Although I have had numerous positive changes in my life, one is worth mentioning.
What was the change?
I experienced a paradigm shift in my physique by losing 15ks weight in 4 months.
When did it happen?
At the beginning of 2020, the whole world was in turmoil due to covid 19 outbreak. During that time, I had to stay at home due to lockdown.
Suddenly I turned into a free person from a busy one. During that time, I decided to lose weight to enhance my personality.
How did it happen?
To lose the extra fat on my body, I researched the internet. I concluded that I needed to focus on my diet for weight loss because It is intuitively true that the contribution of exercise to weight loss is just twenty percent.
By managing our diet, we can lose weight rapidly. To achieve my goal, I practised intermittent fasting, under which I took all my meals between 9 am to 6 pm. Due to this, every day for fifteen hours, my body was fasting.
This changed routine worked like a charm for me, and I got the desired result in four months.
And explain why it was a positive change.
It was a positive change because it enhanced my personality. People started complimenting me for my changed look, and my performance grew appreciably.
Sample Answer 2 (Reading Habit Idea)
Introduction
It is a gospel truth that change is an ongoing process in our lives, whether we like it. Although I have experienced numerous changes in my life, one of them has a collosol impact on me.
What was the change?
The change was to read books instead of watching television.
When did it happen?
Two years back, I promised to replace the bad habit of watching television with reading books.
How did it happen?
During that time, my life was going through a lean patch, and despite working with determination, dedication, and discipline, I was not getting positive results.
To come out of the turbulent situation, I consulted one of my friends Andrew who always gives me sincere advice. He told me that I need to replace my bad habits with good ones to bring success to my life.
Being my bosom friend, he knew that I had the bad habit of watching television for 5 to 6 hours a day. He told me to read books instead of watching television. And I followed his advice sincerely. Initially, I struggled to concentrate, but I became an avid reader with time.
And explain why it was a positive change.
It was a positive change because it brought a paradigm shift in my life. I started utilizing the time spent watching average content on television to gain knowledge through reading books.
Within two months, I became a voracious reader, and from books, I got the wisdom to handle the conflicts adroitly.
And this change has helped me lead my life toward an impressive growth trajectory.
Sample Answer 3 (Becoming a Minimalist Idea)
Introduction
In our lifespan, we undergo numerous changes. Some of them bring purple patches to our lives, and on the other hand, a few changes lead us towards lean patches.
Recently I adopted a new change that has brought a paradigm shift in my life.
What was the change?
The change was to adopt a minimalist attitude in life. In this style of living, we live a simple life with only those things we use and that too in a limited quantity.
When did it happen?
Last year I watched a video on Youtube. Its title was “Life of a minimalist”.That was a moment of change for me, and I adopted a minimalist lifestyle from that day.
How did it happen?
While watching the video, I was astonished by the lifestyle of the presenter.
His kitchen contains one frying pan, two plates, two bowls, one big spoon, and one small one. He has four t-shirts and one pair of jeans. And he has limited stuff in his house, which he uses every day.
And explain why it was a positive change.
It was a positive change because it made my life simple. After adopting the minimalist lifestyle, I do not get the urge to impress others. Instead, my focus is on improving myself.
Moreover, less stuff in the house means less clutter and more expansive vacant space. I do not have much time to dust the house, and I need not spend a boatload of money buying new things.
Lastly, I have started giving importance to quality over quantity in my life, and this changed mindset has helped me climb the ladder of success with ease.
Sample Answer 4 (Showing Gratitude Idea)
Introduction
It is intuitively true that we all have certain beliefs through which we lead our lives, and they become our identity. However, sometimes circumstances prompt us to change them, and we realize that we have the wrong opinions. This mindset change brings a paradigm shift in our lives.
Two years back, I had a positive change in my life.
What was the change?
Instead of showing attitude, I started exhibiting gratitude towards the people I knew.
When did it happen?
A few years back, I attended a motivational seminar. In that program, the keynote speaker talked about the importance of writing a gratitude journal at the end of the day. According to him, before going to bed at night, we should thank god for giving us this life, and we need to pen down five things for which we are grateful to god.
The trainer told us that if we make this practice a part of our life, we can lead our careers towards an impressive growth trajectory. Although I was apprehensive regarding the success of writing a gratitude journal, on my friend’s advice, I started it.
To my surprise, my life changed quickly after adopting this practice.
How did it happen?
After one week of writing, I realized that the practice of writing a gratitude journal made me a positive person.
And explain why it was a positive change.
Earlier I used to have issues with all persons close to me, but after adopting this habit, I started praising everyone around me. I bridged the gap between my friends and me, and my fan following grew considerably.
Moreover, my close ones started coming to me for advice to handle their conflicts adroitly.
Conclusion
In short, this trivial change has positively impacted my life.
Sample Answer 5 (Compound Effect Idea)
Introduction
We all have this habit of resisting change because of the comfort zone we create around ourselves. In reality, changes help us to experience success in our lives. A few years back, I experienced a positive change in my life.
What was the change?
The change was to realize the importance of compounding efforts in our lives.
When did it happen?
Three years back, my life was going through a lean patch, and I had experienced many failures. During that time, one of my friends recommended a book named “The compound effect.”
I honoured the advice of my bosom friend and started reading the book with determination, dedication, and discipline. The points mentioned in the book brought a paradigm shift to my thinking process, and within one month, my personality underwent a dramatic change.
The book’s teachings made me a positive person.
How did it happen?
After reading the first two chapters, I realized the reason for my failure, and it was quitting the tasks in between. According to the book, we should take tiny steps every day to do something colossal in life.
Our consistent efforts are a must-have to lead our lives towards an impressive growth trajectory. On the other hand, when we make half-hearted attempts or leave the tasks in between, our failure is on the cards.
And explain why it was a positive change.
From that day, I started making consistent efforts with dogged determination. And I experienced a good change in my productivity. I have become an optimistic person who follows a stringent routine to carve out a niche.
Sample Answer 6 (Mindfulness Idea)
Introduction
A positive attitude is a must-have to lead our lives towards an impressive growth trajectory in the contemporary epoch.
I underwent a change in the past, which improved my life.
What was the change?
The change was applying the principle of mindfulness in life. According to it, one must work on improving the present instead of pondering over the past and the future.
When did it happen?
This positive change happened in my life one year back.
How did it happen?
It happened when I watched a video of a famous motivational speaker Mr. Sandeep Maheshwari on Youtube. After listening to him, I realized the problem in my thinking process. Before watching that video, I believed that we must decide every action by considering our future.
Moreover, I used to overthink my past experiences. Due to this, my most minor focus was on the present. But watching the video of Mr. Sandeep Maheshwari led to a paradigm shift in my thinking.
And I started working on my present with determination, dedication, and discipline.
And explain why it was a positive change.
It was a positive change because it brought a paradigm shift in my thinking and performance. I spent a sizeable portion of my life overthinking the mistakes I made in the past. But mindfulness has taught me to take past experiences as a learning and not let them take control of me. Forgetting and forgiving are necessary for a fruitful life.
Moreover, it has also taught me not to emphasize the future because it is always uncertain. We do not know how life would be after five years,? What sort of technologies would be there? Or what opportunities would we be having?. Therefore our central focus should always be on improving our present life.
Conclusion
To conclude, the principle of mindfulness has taught me that the past is gone and would never come back. And the future is always uncertain.
Therefore the prudent approach is to focus on what we have in our hands, and that is present.
We need to work with dogged determination to improve our present, automatically taking care of our future.
Sample Answer 7
Introduction
It is a gospel truth that changes give us bitter experiences sometimes, but sometimes they help us grow in life.
A small change in my habit in the past helped me for good.
What was the change?
The change was to read books instead of watching Tv.
When did it happen?
Two years back, I adopted this change in my life.
How did it happen?
I used to waste a sizeable portion of my time watching tv, and my productivity was low. To stop this bad habit, I tried many things with little success.
During that time, one of my friends recommended a book named “Atomic Habits”.After reading that book, I got the right strategy to stop a bad habit.
To stop a bad habit, we need to replace it with a worthwhile activity.
To save time, I decided to read books instead of watching Tv.
And explain why it was a positive change.?
It was a positive change because it brought a paradigm shift in my life. After adopting reading as a habit, I experienced a dramatic change in my personality.
Firstly my personality improved a lot. The knowledge gained from reading books helped me handle the conflicts adroitly in life. For example, I had an issue with my friend, and we were not on talking terms. But after reading a book on friendship, my attitude changed, and I called my friend, leaving my ego behind. To my pleasure, the misunderstanding got cleared instantly.
Secondly, my performance at my work improved considerably. Because the wisdom we gain from reading books helps us lead our lives toward an impressive growth trajectory.
Moreover, the boatload of knowledge I gained from reading books helped me widen my social circle. People meet me to discuss various subjects like geopolitics, space exploration, self-improvement etc.
Follow up Questions
Here are some examples of follow up questions that the examiner might ask during your speaking part 3 related to the cue card “
“Describe a positive change in your life ”.
Q1. Is your country changing rapidly?
Yes, India is in a changing mode post year1992. Before that period, India used to be a closed economy, and a businessperson had to take numerous licenses to start a business. Due to that, the economy was miserable, and the country had to pledge gold to arrange funds.
At that time, the incumbent government decided to break the shackles, and globalization took place, and within five years, the country underwent a paradigm shift.
Since that period, the country has been changing rapidly. Consumers have changed, and due to that, the mindset of manufacturers has also changed.
Q2. How is your country changing?
The country is changing for good and for bad. Talking about the positives, the IT industry, and services sector is booming. India software engineers are giving tough competition to developers worldwide. Due to this reason, many big technology companies have offices in India.
Moreover, the services sector is also a burgeoning one. It is creating a boatload of employment opportunities. Various multinational BPOs operate from India.
Due to increasing salaries, the lifestyle is changing. People wear clothes from throughout the world. The weekend culture has made inroads in the lives of Indians. People work hard from Monday to Friday and enjoy Saturdays and Sundays.
The increasing income had surged the demand for products and services. Due to this, there is a dramatic rise in employment opportunities.
Q3. Do you think change is good？
The change is good in terms of rising incomes and job opportunities. But it is leading to numerous pressing problems. Firstly the quantity of waste has grown manifold. Due to that, many resources go into junk, and the wearer section remains deprived of that.
Moreover, the growth has led to a substantial increase in vehicles plying on roads. This change has brought two problems. Firstly there is a lot of traffic congestion which leads to stress. Secondly, pollution of all kinds has made inroads in our lives.
Lastly, spiralling inflation is forcing some sections to involve in anti-social activities. Due to this crime graph is on an incline.
Q4. What are some of the significant changes that usually occur to people in our lives?
The first significant change is in hormones. With growing age, our body undergoes many changes, and the change in hormones leads to mood upswings.
After that, the other significant change is when we complete our studies and begin our work life. That is the time when we start taking our life seriously.
Our following significant change comes when we tie the nuptial knot. Staying with a life partner leads to numerous challenges that we need to handle adroitly.
Post marriage, the following significant change is when we have kids. We get added responsibility, and we have to provide unabated support to our children.
The last significant change in life is retirement. It is the time when we hang our boots and enjoy our retired life by passing the baton to the next generation.
Q5. Is it essential for people to make changes according to their surroundings?
An adage says, “While in Rome, do what Romans do.”The planet earth is massive in size with numerous cultures, traditions, religions, climates, languages, wardrobes, etc. Every place has its charm coupled with rules and regulations.
In such a scenario, adaptability is the key. By changing ourselves according to our surroundings, we can handle the conflicts adroitly and lead our lives towards an impressive growth trajectory.
Q6.Is negative change always bad?
No, negative change is not always bad. Sometimes we get into a comfort zone, and coming out of it seems like a daunting task for us.
In that case, when a change happens, from the onset, it appears negative to us. However, with time we realise that it is for our benefit.
Q7.In which age group our personality changes the most?
It is a gospel truth that our personality experiences a paradigm shift during our teenage years. During that time, our physical appearance undergoes a massive change. Apart from this, numerous hormonal changes take place in us that alters our mindset.
Q8.How constant learning brings positivity to our lives?
It is unequivocal to say that an empty mind is a devil’s workshop. When we are on a constant learning spree, our brain has too many things to do and remains occupied. Despite being more intelligent than other species, humans do not have the innate ability to focus on two things simultaneously. Consequently, when we get involved in any pursuit, we keep the negative thoughts at bay, and our central attention is on acquiring knowledge.
Therefore it is prudent to say that constant learning inculcates positivity in our lives.
Q9.Why our brain resists change initially?
The primary purpose of our brain is to protect us. Due to this reason, whenever a change requires us to step out of our comfort zone, the brain takes it as a danger and signals us to refrain from embracing it.
However, when we go ahead, and the brain gets accustomed to the new change, it accepts it and works accordingly.
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