The 12 Steps & Their Principles

“Having had a spiritual awakening as the result of these steps, we tried to carry this message to alcoholics and to practice these principles in all our Affairs”

1. We admitted we were powerless over alcoholism—that our lives had become unmanageable. The Principle is Honesty
2. Came to believe that a Power greater than ourselves could restore us to sanity. The Principle is Hope
3. Made a decision to turn our will and our lives over to the care of God as we understood Him. The Principle is Faith
4. Made a searching and fearless moral inventory of ourselves. The Principle is Courage
5. Admitted to God, to ourselves, and to another human being the exact nature of our wrongs. The Principle is Integrity
6. Were entirely ready to have God remove all these defects of character. The Principle is Willingness
7. Humbly asked Him to remove our shortcomings. The Principle is Humility
8. Made a list of all persons we had harmed, and became willing to make amends to them all. The Principle is Brotherly Love
9. Made direct amends to such people wherever possible, except when to do so would injure them or others. The Principle is Justice
10. Continued to take personal inventory and when we were wrong promptly admitted it. The Principle is Perseverance
11. Sought through prayer and meditation to improve our conscious contact with God, as we understood Him, praying only for knowledge of His will for us and the power to carry that out. The Principle is Spiritual Awareness
12. Having had a spiritual awakening as the result of these Steps, we tried to carry this message to alcoholics, and to practice these principles in all our affairs. The Principle is Service