Meet Richard - Author, Meditation Teacher and Spiritual Coach
Hi, I’m Richard Paterson – former monk, meditation teacher, spiritual coach, and author of 3 books—Kick The Thinking Habit, Awaken The Happy You, and Help! I Can’t Stop Thinking.
For the past 25 years, I’ve been helping people who struggle with anxiety, chronic overthinking or relentless self-criticism break free from the prison of compulsive thinking and come home to the peace that is ever-present at the core of your being – to come home to a richer, more authentic, more spiritual experience of life – to think less and grow rich.
From Restless Seeker to Inner Peace
Captivated by the book “Autobiography of a Yogi” by Paramahansa Yogananda, I set off for India aged 20, hoping to find yogis, learn to meditate and discover the secrets of inner peace.
Over the next few decades, I immersed myself in meditation and spent extended periods of time in Indian ashrams and Buddhist temples, studying with various teachers and Masters.
I had a passionate desire to break free from the drama and neuroses of my restless and overactive mind and to experience first-hand the inner state of unconditional peace and uncaused happiness that was the core message of all the teachers I encountered.
In 2004, I became a novice monk and began a 6-month meditation retreat.
A couple of weeks in, I had an extraordinary insight. It was as if the curtain of the mind was peeled back ‘to reveal a luminous inner world of profound peace, stillness, presence and unconditional love’.
For the first time ever, the mind wasn’t troubling me in the slightest. It was still there, doing its dance just as before, but my relationship with it had radically changed. Now it was like a small dog barking far off in the distance.
This state of effortless peace went on for months, and I saw with crystal clarity the real reason I had been suffering all those years – and the simple truth that ends the search.
These insights now form the core of my books, courses, and coaching programmes:
The direct path to freedom – without needing to fix yourself first.
A Few Things I Discovered:
🧘♂️ There is an unshakable peace within you that is untouched by the noise and chaos of your thoughts.
🧘♂️ You don’t need to fix the mind to access this peace. Just stop getting involved with it.
🧘♂️ Trying to find peace of mind is like trying to iron the ocean—it will take years of effort and there’s no need. You can experience peace WITH mind right now, just as you are.
🧘♂️ Through self-awareness you can cut out 95% of the unwanted traffic in your head straight away.
🧘♂️Overthinking is an unconscious habit. The cure? Make unconscious thinking conscious.
… and much, much more.
As someone who had spent years working on myself, attempting to convert all my troublesome thoughts and emotions into peaceful ones – in the blind hope that one day I’d find inner peace – I recognised the immense value of these insights.
The truth is, peace isn’t something you create. It’s something that’s already there inside you right now – something you’re either aware of or not.
Imagine if you could experience peace right now, just as you are. If you could make peace with your anxiety, with your fear, with your feelings of unworthiness through self-awareness and a simple shift in the way you relate to the mind.
How valuable would that be?
What Some of My Clients Are Saying
Here’s what my client Jo had to say after going through my Quiet Mind Peaceful Life Membership programme: “After 20 years of being totally enmeshed in the mind with anxious thoughts, continually analysing and suffering, I now feel liberated.”
Or Bryan from Glasgow after working with me 1:1: “For years, I would fight my mind all day long, trying to get rid of my anxious thoughts and cause myself no end of suffering. Richard has really opened my eyes, heart and mind to acceptance and peace. He has opened my eyes to a completely new outlook on life.”
Or Nuala from Ireland who said: “As a former monk and spiritual coach for many years, Richard’s style of teaching and the tools he provides for quieting the mind are not only incredibly powerful, you’ll notice a huge shift instantaneously.”
If you’d like some practical help to solve your own overthinking issues, click the button below to schedule a free coaching call… with absolutely no strings attached.
Who Am I To Help Others?
- 20+ years experience teaching meditation and running retreats (including 7 years as a monk).
- Thousands of hours of personal meditation practice.
- Fully qualified teacher with the UK Mindfulness Association.
- Many years offering 1:1 and group coaching.
- I’ve written 3 books, over 60 blog posts, articles and online courses.
As for my own practice, I’ve been a student of Atma Vichara (Self-Enquiry) as taught by the Indian Master Ramana Maharshi for the past 15 years and spend around 3 months each year meditating in his ashram.
Why ‘Think Less and Grow Rich’?
Beneath the noise of your mind lies something extraordinary: a treasure trove of uncaused peace, joy, love, and contentment—your true Self.
If this is the case, then the obvious question is: “Why don’t we experience it all the time?”
It’s because our busy thinking minds create so much noise, so much static that we fail to notice the still, silent presence underneath. Peace is always present but we are habitually distracted by our noisy minds.
My work is to guide you back to this space of ongoing peace.
I believe this is the experience every person is looking for, consciously or not. We want to end the search and ‘come home’ to ourselves.
As spiritual teacher, Eckhart Tolle says:
“The most decisive moment in your life is when you discover you are not your thoughts or emotions—that you can be present as the awareness behind them.”
Ready to Experience Peace Now?
I warmly invite you to subscribe to my Think Less and Grow Rich weekly newsletter by clicking this link.
Every Wednesday, I’ll send you my latest post, revealing practical steps you can take to experience more peace right away.
You will also receive a FREE copy of my book: “Help! I Can’t Stop Thinking”, which you’ll be able to download straight away.
You can join the discussion in my free FB group Quiet Mind Peaceful Life here.
Work closely with me in a small group in my Quiet Mind Peaceful Life Inner Circle Membership programme.
Or, if you can sense the huge potential of what’s on offer and you’re ready to take the next step, why not book a FREE discovery call with me today? Let’s explore how I can help you break free from mental struggle for good and dive deep into the peace within.
Email me at richard@thinklessandgrowrich.com
I look forward to helping you on your journey to a life of peace and freedom.
Peace and Love, Richard
53 Station Road, Roslin EH25 9LP, Scotland, UK.