Big Book - Chapter 5 How It Works (pg 64 & top 65)

Therefore, we started upon a personal inventory. This was Step Four. A business which takes no regular inventory usually goes broke. Taking commercial inventory is a fact-finding and a fact-facing process. It is an effort to discover the truth about the stock-in-trade. One object is to disclose damaged or unsalable goods, to get rid of them promptly and without regret. If the owner of the business is to be successful, he cannot fool himself about values. We did exactly the same thing with our lives. We took stock honestly. First, we searched out the flaws in our make-up which caused our failure. Being convinced that self, manifested in various ways, was what had defeated us, we considered its common manifestations. Resentment is the 'number one' offender. It destroys more alcoholics than anything else. From it stem all forms of spiritual disease, for we have been not only mentally and physically ill, we have been spiritually sick. When the spiritual malady is overcome, we straighten out mentally and physically. In dealing with resentments, we set them on paper. We listed people, institutions or principles with who we were angry. We asked ourselves why we were angry. In most cases it was found that our self-esteem, our pocketbooks, our ambitions, our personal relationships, (including sex) were hurt or threatened. So we were sore. We were 'burned up.' On our grudge list we set opposite each name our injuries. Was it our self-esteem, our security, our ambitions, our personal, or sex relations, which had been interfered with? We were usually as definite as this example: I’m resentful at: The Cause Affects my: Sex relations. Self-esteem (fear) His attention to my wife. Sex relations. Mr. Brown Told my wife of my mistress. Self-esteem (fear) Brown may get my job at the office. Security Self-esteem (fear) She's a nut -- she snubbed me. She committed her Personal relationship husband for drinking Self-esteem Mrs. Jones He’s my friend. (fear) She’s a gossip. Unreasonable-Unjust - Overbearing - Self-esteem (fear) My employer Threatens to fire Security. me for my drinking and padding my ex - pense account. Misunderstands and Pride -- Personal My wife nags. Likes Brown. sex relations -- Wants house put in Security (fear) her name. Chapter 5 How It Works (pg 64 & top 65)