Randy J. Paterson (Author of How to Be Miserable)

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Randy J. Paterson

欧宝娱乐 Author

Born

Vancouver, Canada

Website

Twitter

Genre

Self Help, Psychology

Influences

Alain de Botton
James Hollis
Daniel Gilbert
Robertson Davies
Quentin Crisp ...more

Member Since

November 2015

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Dr Randy Paterson (randypaterson.com) is a psychologist and author living in Vancouver Canada. He founded and operates Changeways Clinic, a multiple-provider psychotherapy practice focusing on cognitive behaviour therapy for stress, anxiety, and mood disorders. He is the author of five books (including The Assertiveness Workbook, now in its 2nd edition, a recipient of the ABCT Self-Help Seal of Merit, How to be Miserable: 40 Strategies You Already Use, How to be Miserable in Your 20s, Private Practice Made Simple, and Your Depression Map) and numerous therapy guides and clinician resources. He has taught over 300 workshops on psychological issues, offering programs across Canada, as well as in Australia, New Zealand, and Hong Kong. His vide ...more

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Popular Answered Questions

What鈥檚 your advice for aspiring writers?

Randy J. Paterson Write.

Assume the truth: that the first several thousand pages you write will never reach publication. Consequently, you must not wait until you have 鈥辞谤别Write.

Assume the truth: that the first several thousand pages you write will never reach publication. Consequently, you must not wait until you have a book contract or a job that involves writing. This is like waiting until you are selected for the NBA final before you are willing to pick up a basketball and try shooting baskets. You will never be in the final until you have practiced a great deal, and if by some miracle this happened anyway it would be too late for you to learn your craft.

Keep a journal, join a writing group, create a blog, take courses, and work on your use of language in your everyday life - in your Facebook posts, in other social media, and in the bits of writing you do in your existing job or schoolwork.(less)

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How do you get inspired to write?

Randy J. Paterson Waiting for inspiration is a trap for a writer. If you only sit down to the computer when the spirit moves you, you will never produce a book. The pro鈥辞谤别Waiting for inspiration is a trap for a writer. If you only sit down to the computer when the spirit moves you, you will never produce a book. The process of writing is much more about discipline and scheduling than it is about inspiration.

That said, you need to have ideas. For this I'd say there are a few factors:

1. Give up on the search for the one great idea. The great idea will only grow out of a compost heap of mediocre ones, so you have to let go of the search for a final product and instead generate lots of ideas, knowing that most of them will never see the light of day.
2. Broaden your experience. A vocabulary is partly a list of words, but it is also a set of life experiences that you can draw upon. The more varied the experiences you have, the more of an idea-based vocabulary you have to work with.
3. Follow blind alleys. So what if you spend 6 hours fleshing out an idea that never goes anywhere? Count up the number of hours you waste on other activities, and time "wasted" on exploring a concept, or book idea, or way of expressing something no longer seems quite as awful a prospect.(less)

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Combine Editions
Randy J. Paterson鈥檚 books

Average rating: 4.01 · 3,960 ratings · 450 reviews · 11 distinct works 鈥� Similar authors

	How to Be Miserable: 40 Strategies You Already Use really liked it 4.00 avg rating — 2,863 ratings — published 2016 — 11 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	The Assertiveness Workbook: How to Express Your Ideas and Stand Up for Yourself at Work and in Relationships 4.15 avg rating — 821 ratings — published 2000 — 14 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	How to Be Miserable in Your Twenties: 40 Strategies to Fail at Adulting 3.71 avg rating — 214 ratings — 4 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	Private Practice Made Simple: Everything You Need to Know to Set Up and Manage a Successful Mental Health Practice 3.90 avg rating — 40 ratings — published 2011 — 9 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	Your Depression Map: Find the Source of Your Depression and Chart Your Own Recovery 4.29 avg rating — 17 ratings — published 2002	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	The Assertiveness Book really liked it 4.00 avg rating — 4 ratings — 2 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	The Assertiveness Workbook, Second Edition: How to Express Your Ideas and Stand Up for Yourself at Work and in Relationships by Randy J. Paterson (欧宝娱乐 Author), Adam Barr (reader) it was amazing 5.00 avg rating — 1 rating	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	The Core Program: A Cognitive Behavioural Guide to Depression 0.00 avg rating — 0 ratings	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	Assertiveness Workbook (00) by PhD, Randy J Paterson [Paperback (2000)] 0.00 avg rating — 0 ratings — 2 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	Communication assertive : le cahier d'exercice: Guide pour m'aider 脿 m'exprimer \| Livre pour croire en moi \| Guide pour m鈥檃ider 脿 m鈥檃ffirmer by Randy J. Paterson (欧宝娱乐 Author), Infinitus Graphics (Illustrator), Angela Nayar (Translator) 0.00 avg rating — 0 ratings — 2 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars

More books by Randy J. Paterson…

3 posts
Randy J. Paterson's Blog

The Assertiveness Workbook Book Club

Hey readers,
I've just developed a free online on-demand series of videos to accompany your reading experience with The Assertiveness Workbook. For each chapter I pull out one or two points to discuss and amplify, and for many I demonstrate or discuss the exercises that go with it.

Here's where to find the program:

Enjoy! Read more of this blog post »

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Published on October 28, 2022 09:34

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Quotes by Randy J. Paterson (?)

“Style, on the other hand, is the art of bringing your defining individual features to the fore, regardless of what others might expect or find acceptable:”
― Randy J. Paterson, How to Be Miserable: 40 Strategies You Already Use

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“Fashion, in Crisp鈥檚 view, is the art of denying one鈥檚 individuality in order to adopt the uniforms and dictates of culture, as determined by people who have never met you, and do not care whether you exist. The implicit goal is to cover your imperfections and become something you are not: a person who is acceptable in the eyes of others. A pleasing shell with no discernible interior. In Crisp鈥檚 words, 鈥淔ashion is what you adopt when you don鈥檛 know who you are.”
― Randy J. Paterson, How to Be Miserable: 40 Strategies You Already Use

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“Your emotions are governed not by the circumstances of your life, but by the circumstances to which you pay attention”
― Randy J. Paterson, How to Be Miserable: 40 Strategies You Already Use

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See all Randy J. Paterson's quotes »

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