Spiritual Principles


  • 196: Spiritual Principle – Unity (Sort Of)
    We are talking about the spiritual principle of unity. What is unity? Is it everyone agreeing all the time? Is unity when some people sacrifice so that everyone can get along? How is unity different than uniformity? Does unity have anything to do with fidelity? What other spiritual principles does it take to practice unity? … Read more
  • 191: Spiritual Principle – Anonymity (Sort Of)
    We are talking about the spiritual principle of anonymity. Just don’t say your last name or tell anyone about your recovery, right? There’s so much more to this seemingly simple spiritual principle. After all, it’s the spiritual foundation of all the traditions. We explore the multiple facets of anonymity, how it applies in our lives … Read more
  • 189: Spiritual Principle – Perseverance (Sort Of)
    We are talking about the spiritual principle of perseverance. What is perseverance? Is there science behind our understanding of perseverance? We talk about the definitions of perseverance, what we understand it to mean, and how to practice to increase your levels of perseverance. We explore perseverance, it’s similarities to grit, determination and commitment. We take … Read more
  • 186: Spiritual Principle – Acceptance and Surrender (Sort Of)
    We are talking about the spiritual principles of acceptance and surrender? What do they mean? Are acceptance and surrender the same thing? Are the expressing 2 different levels of the same idea? We attempt to sift through the subtle nuance of difference between acceptance and surrender. Listen in as we explore the spiritual principles and … Read more
  • 184: Spiritual Principle – Integrity (Sort Of)
    We are exploring the spiritual principle of integrity. What is integrity? We honestly spend most of the episode on this question. There are a lot of different ideas about integrity and what it is. We also seem to bring up the concept of integrity versus authenticity, and if they can co-exist. Frequently the conversation becomes … Read more
  • 177: Spiritual Principle – Gratitude (Sort Of)
    We are talking about the spiritual principle of gratitude. We look into trying to find a solid definition we can agree on. Then we talk about what gratitude might look like in your life, or feel like. We give a list of ways to practice gratitude, and also list some of the benefits of increasing … Read more
  • 172: Spiritual Principle – Humility (Sort Of)
    We are talking about the spiritual principle of humility. What does it mean to be humble? It sounds similar to humiliation, but it’s very different. We try to define humility. We talk about thinking of ourselves less instead of thinking less of ourselves. How can we increase our humility? Is there a way to practice … Read more
  • 169: Spiritual Principle – Tolerance (Sort Of)
    We are exploring the spiritual principle of tolerance. What does it mean to be tolerant of something? Is it purely to be able to put up with it? Or is tolerance being open to it? Is there such a thing as too much tolerance? Billy, Caraline, Jason and Jenny try to figure out just what … Read more
  • 162: Spiritual Principle – Unconditional Love (Sort Of)
    Unconditional love. Seems like a lofty goal. We investigate and explore unconditional love as a spiritual principle. How can we practice this? Where is a model of unconditional love in the world? Is unconditional love the deepest love, or the most basic love? Is unconditional love, abuse? Is love more about the feeling, or the … Read more
  • 158: Spiritual Principle – Faith (Sort Of)
    Is faith really a spiritual principle? What is it? A belief in something? What does this belief do for us? How in the world would you practice faith? Faith is defined in many ways. Some level of belief applied to a situation that you may not be able to know for sure. We discuss the … Read more
  • 154: Spiritual Principle – Self-Discipline (Sort Of)
    We explore the spiritual principle of self-discipline. Is self-discipline different than self-control? Are both of these also different than willpower? What actually is self-discipline? How does it work? Do we train ourselves to get better at sticking to a plan? Do we actively find ways to calm our nervous system over time so that we … Read more
  • 150: Spiritual Principle – Forgiveness (Sort Of)
    What do you know about forgiveness as a spiritual principle? It is suggested we practice forgiveness, but how? Is forgiveness only accepting and letting it go, or does it involve ultimately wishing well the purpose you needed to forgive. Does forgiveness mean there must be reconciliation of the relationship? Why is forgiveness important? Are there … Read more
  • 147: Spiritual Principle – Compassion (Sort Of)
    This month we look at the spiritual principle of compassion. Interestingly, while compassion is the source of the 12 step world, we rarely talk about the principle of compassion by name. You’ll hear honesty, open-mindedness and willingness in most meetings, but when’s the last time you heard someone say compassion? We get into defining compassion, … Read more
  • 143: Spiritual Principle – Patience (Sort Of)
    We are talking all about patience. Is there science behind the idea of patience? Is patience a spiritual principle, to be applied in all situations? Or is patience more of a virtue, that is meant to be practiced in a proper balance? Are there times patience can be a negative in your life? How would … Read more
  • 139: Spiritual Principle – Commitment (Sort Of)
    This month we are talking about the spiritual principle of commitment. Jenny joins us to examine what commitment is, how it might be different than any other choice we make, and how to practice commitment. Commitment can seem like a lifelong decision, or an eternal choice, but maybe commitment is softer and more like choosing … Read more
  • 134: Spiritual Principle – Trust (Sort Of)
    The spiritual principle of trust. We continue to examine a spiritual principle each month. We delve into what trust is, how to practice trust, ways that might be useful to create more trust in our lives, and if there is an unhealthy level of trust. Just like some other spiritual principles, it seems there is … Read more
  • 131: Spiritual Principle – Courage (Sort Of)
    We are talking about courage today. What is courage? How would we develop and strengthen courage? Is it a process of being braver? Or is courage what happens when we practice other spiritual principles? We define what courage is not, which is not having fear, courage is walking through fear. Is courage a good thing … Read more
  • 127: Spiritual Principle – Willingness (Sort Of)
    What is willingness? The ability to be willing? Being willing? The readiness to do something? How do we actually practice willingness? Is there a tactic to be more willing? Can we possible make ourselves more willing that we are? Is the answer to just keep doing the wrong thing until we are ready to do … Read more
  • 121: Spiritual Principle – Openmindedness (Sort Of)
    Continuing our dive into spiritual principles, we focus this month on openmindedness. We explore the world of having an open mind. Are you openminded? How many people think they are closeminded? I bet very few people think they have a closed mind, and yet, we encounter so many people that are not open to new … Read more
  • 118: Spiritual Principle – Honesty (Sort Of)
    Just get honest! Or is that always the best way to go about life? Is honesty a principle that we are meant to practice in all our endeavors? Or is honesty a virtue, where the goal isn’t honesty 100% of the time, but to find a balance? We explore the concept of honesty, some of … Read more
  • 59: Are You As Openminded As You Think You Are? (Sort Of)
    11/29/20 You’re openminded, right? But are you really openminded? 95% of people think they are more openminded than average, which means that a lot of us overestimate our openmindedness. Did you know that being openminded is actually being receptive to arguments? Or that most closeminded people are closed to the idea that they might be … Read more
  • 43: Honesty, Is It Really The Best Policy? (Sort Of)
    8/9/20 We talk about honesty and how we may not be applying it in ALL of our lives. Maybe we are willing to lie to institutions. Maybe we are willing to tell small lies. Maybe we will lie when it doesn’t harm anyone else. Maybe we will lie to save others from harm. Maybe we … Read more