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“Selfishness — self-centeredness! That, we think, is the root of our troubles.” — Alcoholics Anonymous (1939) · Chapter 5 · How It Works

From Chapter 5, in the passage explaining what the inventory keeps uncovering underneath resentment and fear.

It’s not an insult; it’s a diagnosis. Self-centeredness here doesn’t mean vanity — it means the exhausting habit of starring in every scene, auditing every slight, managing every outcome. The program’s quiet trick is that helping someone else is the fastest exit from your own head. Feeling stuck in yours today? Do one unglamorous thing for somebody and tell no one.

Quote from the 1939 first edition of Alcoholics Anonymous (public domain). Reflection original to washingtonsober.com. This site is independent and not affiliated with or endorsed by Alcoholics Anonymous World Services, Inc.