Action legend Arnold Schwarzenegger has not only evolved as an actor but he has built his personality and tackled any obstacle that came before him. The actor is well-known for his physique and he never stopped pumping iron in his life.
The Terminator star, however, has an issue of his own to tackle. The actor revealed that he struggled with reading when he was a child and it stayed. But he employed some methods to overcome his battle with words.
Arnold Schwarzenegger Revealed His Dyslexia
Arnold Schwarzenegger has appeared in over 40 movies so far and it is fascinating that he was able to rise above his struggle with reading the scripts. The Conan the Barbarian star, who possesses a net worth of over $450 million, revealed his dyslexia— a learning disorder that involves difficulty reading— and how he tackled it.
“Here’s my secret: I’m a terrible reader. They didn’t talk about learning disabilities in Austria in the 1950s, so most of the time, when I was asked to read out loud in class, it was just a disaster, and I got smacked with a ruler. But now I know that I’m dyslexic,” Schwarzenegger said.
It must have been very hard for the actor. However, Schwarzenegger is tough and he could almost get over it with some of his mantras like getting fitter, forming good habits, and pursuing his goal. His mantras seemed to work as he found a way out of dyslexia with new techniques and methods to prevent him from being stuck. But life comes with surprises and some things might trigger the actor to recall his rough past in school. The actor revealed that when he was recording the audiobook of his recent memoir Be Useful, the actor was triggered by his memories.
Arnold Schwarzenegger’s Battle With Dyslexia
It is definitely hard for an actor to battle with dyslexia as the actor has to constantly deal with scripts. At first, Schwarzenegger had the same issue, but eventually, he was able to tame it and do his magic. “I have found ways to make sure it doesn’t hold me back,” Schwarzenegger said of his
“It’s why when I prepare for a movie, I read the script over and over in the months before until every line is memorized, and when I give a speech, I do at least 20 practice reps so I can get my brain around the words. Reps save me every time. But this was a whole book, over 200 pages. And they told me that most people record their books in 3 days in a studio. When I heard that, I just filled with dread. Reading for that long every day without time to practice was my nightmare. I could already see the teacher holding the ruler over my head.”
For Schwarzenegger, practice was the key. He would practice his reading every morning to be prepared for the recording session in the evening. It was far from being easy, the actor said that he would give “a second to complain and ask what I got myself into, and then I told myself it was time to deal with it.” There is no doubt that the actor has built his career out of sweat and tears but his struggle with dyslexia also took a serious toll in his life.
Source: Men’s Health
