The 10 Percent?
By Doug W., webservant@aascv.org
The Pareto Principle states that roughly 80% of outcomes come from 20% of the causes. A common example is that 80% of the work is done by 20% of the people. It’s named after Vilfredo Pareto.
This pattern is frequently observed in real estate, business, social events, and other settings where effort is required to accomplish something.
In AA, the ratio might be even more pronounced—closer to 90/10 rather than 80/20. This imbalance can create frustration and, if not acknowledged, may lead to resentment among those who feel burdened by the lack of assistance.
In service work, someone organizes a meeting or event, handles the execution, and then others show up (often late), eat the snacks, play games on their phone and express dissatisfaction. They may see it as a waste of time, leave early without helping, or fail to express gratitude. Sometimes, they even claim they would have done it differently.
This assessment may seem harsh but isn’t far from reality when events are organized by volunteer AA members or AA groups.
What causes this pattern? Why does it occur so frequently? Why is the percentage even more skewed in AA compared to society at large?
When we came into the rooms, damaged by alcohol and with our lives in ruins, the fellowship nurtured us back to physical health through encouragement, prayer, and a sense of belonging. The rooms provided safety. We learned we needed a start on a spiritual experience by working the steps—and to our amazement, it worked.
It’s not uncommon to see people get their jobs back, rebuild their families, and find a sense of relief. This is truly beautiful.
Then something happens—they recover what they lost and often wander away from what saved them. Why?
While the reasons are complex and varied, I would attribute it primarily to the lack of practicing these spiritual principles in all of our affairs (Step 12).
The steps have spiritual principles, behind them. The spiritual principles are not bound just to the words of the steps, they have work for anyone who works to understand them deeply. We did the work but took credit for it ourselves. We say, “I worked the steps,” but AA is a spiritual program. Where is God in this process? Did we give God the credit?
Even the best of us are agnostic at times. We want to run the show. We would be happy if others did what we want, when we want it. We look at our behavior and recognize we hurt people. We step on their toes, and they are wounded. (paraphrased from AA, page 61.)
The solution that truly works is working the steps again—not to justify our behaviors but to allow God to change us further. The first time we worked the steps was to ask God to remove our drinking problem, but that was only a symbol of our deeper issues. That first journey through the steps was very satisfying. Our spirits were lifted, and we got relief. But our relationships often remained damaged. Many of us get sober only to see our marriages fall apart or our children refuse to speak to us. What a mess.
Again, the solution is the action to work the steps again to go deeper, to uncover and discard still more bad inventory. When I am disturbed, there is still something wrong with me. I have a spiritual problem.
Those in service are living in a spiritual experience and giving back. Most service work is never seen by the collective, but it is happening all around us. Who are those that setup the meeting, put the chairs away, make the coffee and take out the trash? When we see a need, we should ask ourselves how can I be helpful, do I have a willingness to help?
What we really have is a daily reprieve contingent on the maintenance of our spiritual condition (AA, page 85.) Yet we see people take service positions and, after some time, fail to complete that commitment. They simply fall away—which is different from circumstances outside their control, such as health issues or relocating.
When we rework the steps we get a new perspective of our spiritual condition, we see our defects and shortcomings again and again. New behavior does not emerge if we continue to live in old patterns.
How is my prayer life? Do I express gratitude? Do I spend time with God? Are my prayers demands? Do I treat God as a genie or a partner? Do I ask for guidance and strength or do I run the show? A spiritual practice is hard and dry when we operate under self-propulsion. Refusing to place God first, we had deprived ourselves of His help. (Twelve Steps and Twelve Traditions, p. 75)
Ask your sponsor for a deeper dive into your spiritual adventure. Rework your steps, open your mind to a new experience, and find the necessary willingness and honesty. If your sponsor isn’t available for that spiritual dive, seek an AA member whose experience you admire. There’s no rule against seeking deeper guidance from multiple spiritual advisors—whether a rabbi, priest, or trusted AA friend. The Big Book is inexhaustible—each time we recommit to working the steps, new understanding emerges and a fresh experience unfolds. For a new experience to happen, we must take action.
Pray about it and with gratitude, tell someone thank you for their service.