After finishing up at university, Richardson travelled to South Africa to undertake charity work with underprivileged children and the Warriors prop has opened up on that experience.
He said: "After the U20s, I found myself with a free summer and so I joined the Bhubesi Pride Foundation. The way the charity works is you go around under-privileged areas in southern Africa teaching rugby in townships or similar to, as a way of instilling values.
"So we'd show up, show them how to work as a team, give them a couple of fun days, send them off with a meal. And so we moved around, we started in Pretoria, then we went up to Botswana, then across to Zambia.
"It was great, I loved it. Really felt like I was giving back. Rugby was obviously something I was very passionate about so it was great seeing so many people keen to take part.
"We were in I think it's the Mamalodi township just by Pretoria, some really impoverished areas, but even then they were so happy to see us and so happy to take part, I thought it was great. I would have been 19, about to turn 20. It was great."
After university, Richardson was never truly convinced whether he'd be offered the opportunity to pursue a career in rugby.
The one-cap Scotland international was planning to become a lawyer but then Exeter Chiefs came along.
He said: "There was a bit of keeping my hand in both jars going on, I think. I picked Exeter [university] because of the rugby programme, but I didn't necessarily head down there with an eye to joining the Chiefs.
"That was like a case of 'if I can show them at the university level that maybe they'd be interested, then that would be a bonus' but I was really thinking of knuckling down and getting a real job, as my dad would have put it."
And turning to his current job, Richardson is under no illusions that Glasgow need to produce a much better performance against the Stormers than in the emphatic defeat to the Lions at the weekend.
Saturday's showdown will be pivotal to deciding who will finish top of the URC table and earn a home run in the play-offs as only four points separates leaders Glasgow and the Stormers.
One massive benefit for Franco Smith's men is that they won’t be playing at altitude as they were in Johannesburg last week.
"It's obviously difficult," admitted Richardson. "Everyone always says it's difficult. I'm not here to make excuses for the game.
"We've done our learnings from it, we've done our analysis. We're ready to move forward and hopefully provide some better performances in the near future. But it certainly was a challenge that I found very novel.
"I've not really experienced anything like it before, but I'm hoping I get a few more opportunities to try it.
"Coming back down [from altitude], the change in my sleep at least, coming back down that first night we got here. Thank goodness.
"I feel like I'm waking up and I've actually had sleep this time rather than waking up like 'have I just closed my eyes and the morning has come?
Richardson will be staying at Scotstoun next week after signing a one-year contract extension.
"I've really enjoyed being here this season," said Richardson.
"I feel like I've learnt a lot from the coaches. I think around the time that there was more opportunity for me to play a bit more rugby, I was unlucky to miss a few of those games due to injury. But I'm back at it now, making the most of it while I can and really enjoying myself."