Phelipe Siani reflects on his relationship with books: ‘I’m not a voracious reader’

Ao Terra, a journalist, explains how she learned to enjoy reading and cites ADHD as a turning point

Filippo Siani he made a career in television journalism. In these 20 years dedicated to the profession he has already worked at SBTfor the Rede Globo –including affiliates and headquarters– and now serves as the anchor point at the center of Soft news from the CNN Brazil. At the same time he is also a businessman, speaker, influencer and will launch himself as a book author.

• This interview is part of the series I recommend!where celebrities share their stories with books.

Splitting your time between five careers at once, Filippo Siani He rarely finds free time to dedicate to reading. And even if he succeeds, contrary to the stereotype surrounding the profession, he is not always motivated to carefully read a book.

The habit of reading Filippo Siani currently it happens in homeopathic doses, that is, in small moments of daily life, generally when you are on public transport, having a coffee before a meeting, in the app car or relaxing at home. He also doesn’t stick to periodicity, he can read a little today and tomorrow, then simply continue in two days, read one week and return to the book the next. He goes at his own pace.

“I didn’t like reading”

Despite being a reference in communication, he has not always had a good relationship with books. In his childhood and youth he considered himself a person who did not like to read. Today he understands why, as he has been diagnosed with ADHD (Attention deficit hyperactivity disorder) just over three years ago. After going through a therapeutic process, he believes he learned to appreciate the habit of reading.

“I never was, and to this day I am not a voracious reader, but I have always been passionate about stories, learning them and telling them. I have always been hyperactive. Today I understand and know I have it ADHDbut when I was a child we didn’t talk about it, we didn’t have this diagnosis. I had a lot of trouble sitting down and reading. At the time, what ended up catching my attention the most were the ‘Monica’s gang‘, which brought stories that were quick and easy to consume. They were a big part of my childhood.”

Like most children, he began reading and writing around the age of seven. Coming from a lower middle class family, where his mother worked in a shopping center To support himself, he acknowledges that he was not encouraged to read much at home or at school. The interest arose on his own initiative. However, hyperactivity was a factor that made consistency difficult.

When he was young, already in college, he felt frustrated with studying journalism and, in theory, did not like the habit of reading.

“I blamed myself because I thought I didn’t like reading and I asked myself, ‘Man, how can I be a journalist if I don’t like reading?’. I had a feeling it wouldn’t work, because everyone says they need to read a lot. But I realized it’s not that I didn’t like it, I just didn’t know how to create a reading habit. When you want to save, don’t start with R$5,000, but with smaller amounts that fit your pocket. I did this with books: I chose lighter readings.”

It was at that moment that Filippo Siani he met authors who changed his view of the world, such as Truman CapoteMario Sergio Cortella and José Saramago. Working and studying to pay for his journalism course, he admits that this was the time he read the most, often more than one title at a time.

«I inserted reading wherever I could: on the bus, during lunch at the market where I worked… Some books I couldn’t read in full, so I resorted to speed reading or summaries. It was a complex routine, but very important, because I learned that I didn’t need to memorize everything. At school we had to memorize. Even today I know Camões’ sonnet by heart, but at that time we didn’t study it to understand what it said. With these books I started to ask myself why society is the way it is… And this changed my perspective on life.”

“I came home and didn’t want to read anything else”

When he entered broadcast journalism, his reading frequency decreased, but this time he became complacent and understood that this was a consequence of the profession.

“A journalist’s routine requires a lot of reading. The process of studying the agenda on the street, for example, is continuous reading. Sometimes the Central Bank report on the interest rate was published. I had to open the document, read a lot, translate it for the public, turn it into a report and present it. It’s an intense routine. So, a lot of times, I would come home and I didn’t want to read anything else, I just wanted to play video games.

Already established in his career, Filippo Siani decided to further investigate his difficulty with reading. I had always noticed that I had difficulty staying focused, needing to reread paragraphs and even entire pages because I forgot the content. He was eventually diagnosed with ADHD. From this moment on he redefines his relationship with books and begins to see his “difficulty” differently.

“I spent my life blaming myself and trying to fit into patterns that weren’t part of how my brain worked. When I discovered the ADHDit was extremely liberating. As incredible as it may seem, since then I started reading a lot more, because I started respecting my time and creating tools, like always carrying my Kindle in my backpack or leaving a book on the bedside table.”

“I bring this up because I know I’m not the only one who feels guilty for not reading it. Sometimes I see people posting that they read 30 books in a year. I felt bad that I couldn’t read as much. But everyone has their own pace, and if you can’t read as much as you’d like, read the things that make sense to you.”

Among the five careers he divides, one is that of a writer. Method creator Comeduxãohe plans to publish a book on high-performance communication. The deadline is not yet defined, but for those looking for a good read, leave a suggestion.

“If the person is not an avid reader, I would recommend the book 20 short stories by Truman Capote. It is an interesting read because, although it is not the simplest in the world, it contains short stories. In 15 minutes you can read a story and feel satisfied.

20 Stories of Truman Capote: the book that changed Phelipe Siani’s life

Source: Terra

Rose

Rose James is a Gossipify movie and series reviewer known for her in-depth analysis and unique perspective on the latest releases. With a background in film studies, she provides engaging and informative reviews, and keeps readers up to date with industry trends and emerging talents.