The Traditions show us how to love each other. The principles that work for the AA groups also apply to our relationship with God, our families, friends, and those with whom we work. It is by practicing the principles of the traditions that we carry our the steps in the world.

We live in the solution, not the problem. We are united to one another in love. The natural expression of love is service, and when we love, we want to serve. The Twelve Concepts are the service Principles that carry out the promises of love contained in the traditions.

Download a Group Inventory from AAWS

• Tradition 1
  Our common welfare should come first; personal recovery depends upon A.A. unity.
  
• Tradition 2
  For our group purpose there is but one ultimate authority—a loving God as He may express Himself in our group conscience. Our leaders are but trusted servants; they do not govern.
  
• Tradition 3
  The only requirement for A.A. membership is a desire to stop drinking.
  
• Tradition 4
  Each group should be autonomous except in matters affecting other groups or A.A. as a whole.
• Tradition 5
  Each group has but one primary purpose—to carry its message to the alcoholic who still suffers.
• Tradition 6
  An A.A. group ought never endorse, finance, or lend the A.A. name to any related facility or outside enterprise, lest problems of money, property, and prestige divert us from our primary purpose.
• Tradition 7
  Every A.A. group ought to be fully self-supporting, declining outside contributions.
  
• Tradition 8
  Alcoholics Anonymous should remain forever non-professional, but our service centers may employ special workers.
  
• Tradition 9
  A.A., as such, ought never be organized; but we may create service boards or committees directly responsible to those they serve.
  
• Tradition 10
  Alcoholics Anonymous has no opinion on outside issues; hence the A.A. name ought never be drawn into public controversy.
  
• Tradition 11
  Our public relations policy is based on attraction rather than promotion; we need always maintain personal anonymity at the level of press, radio, and films.
  
• Tradition 12
  Anonymity is the spiritual foundation of all our traditions, ever reminding us to place principles before personalities.
  

The principles of the Concepts show us how to love each other through being of service to the world. In short, the motto of this meeting is: “Unity Insures Recovery Through Service.”

Additional documents on the concepts of service |  Concepts Checklist | Concepts List & Prayer

• Concept 1
  Final responsibility and ultimate authority for A.A. world services should always reside in the collective conscience of our whole Fellowship.
  
• Concept 2
  The General Service Conference of A.A. has become, for nearly every practical purpose, the active voice and the effective conscience of our whole society in its world affairs.
  
• Concept 3
  To insure effective leadership, we should endow each element of A.A. – the Conference, the General Service Board and its service corporations, staffs, committees, and executives – with a traditional “Right of Decision”.
  
• Concept 4
  At all responsible levels, we ought to maintain a traditional “Right of Participation,” allowing a voting representation in reasonable proportion to the responsibility that each must discharge.
• Concept 5Throughout our structure, a traditional “Right of Appeal” ought to prevail, so that minority opinion will be heard and personal grievances receive careful consideration.
• Concept 6
  The Conference recognizes that the chief initiative and active responsibility in most world service matters should be exercised by the trustee members of the Conference acting as the General Service Board.
  
• Concept 7
  The Charter and Bylaws of the General Service Board are legal instruments, empowering the trustees to manage and conduct world service affairs. The Conference Charter is not a legal document; it relies upon tradition and the A.A. purse for final effectiveness.
  
• Concept 8
  The trustees are the principal planners and administrators of over-all policy and finance. They have custodial oversight of the separately incorporated and constantly active services, exercising this through their ability to elect all the directors of these entities.
  
• Concept 9
  Good service leadership at all levels is indispensable for our future functioning and safety. Primary world service leadership, once exercised by the founders, must necessarily be assumed by the trustees.
  
• Concept 10
  Every service responsibility should be matched by an equal service authority, with the scope of such authority well defined.
  
• Concept 11
  The trustees should always have the best possible committees, corporate service directors, executives, staffs, and consultants. Composition, qualifications, induction procedures, and rights and duties will always be matters of serious concern.
  
• Concept 12
  The Conference shall observe the spirit of A.A. tradition, taking care that it never becomes the seat of perilous wealth or power; that sufficient operating funds and reserve be its prudent financial principle; that it place none of its members in a position of unqualified authority over others; that it reach all important decisions by discussion, vote, and whenever possible, substantial unanimity; that its actions never be personally punitive nor an incitement to public controversy; that it never perform acts of government; that, like the Society it serves, it will always remain democratic in thought and action.