In our season finale, we meet Bob W., the General Manager of the General Service Office. Bob shares his thoughts on servant-leadership and the vital work of translating A.A. literature into numerous languages. Roberto, a recovering alcoholic from Miami, tells us about his powerful experience serving the Spanish-speaking A.A. community and his service trip to Mexico.

- The views and opinions expressed

during this podcast are

those of our guests.

No one person speaks for A.A. as a whole.

(upbeat music)

- Welcome to episode eight,

the season one finale

of Our Primary Purpose.

My name is Nathan and I'm an alcoholic.

Welcome to GSO.

(upbeat music)

All season long we've been

talking about GSO's many roles

including organizing and

supporting meetings and events.

But the most important event

of the year is the General

Service Conference.

When delegates from across the

US and Canada come together

to make decisions about A.A.

They are responsible for ensuring

that the groups in A.A. have a voice

in the affairs of the fellowship.

The work of the General Service Conference

is not all business.

There is something deeply

spiritual about the responsibility

of charting A.A.'s future.

At the 1954 General Service

Conference, Bernard B. Smith,

non-alcoholic, then chairperson

of the Board of Trustees,

and one of the architects

of the A.A. service

structure spoke on the topic.

We asked retired GSO staffer Jeff W.

to read from Smith's remarks.

Why do we need a conference?

- We may not need a

General Service Conference

to ensure our own recovery.

We do need it to ensure the

recovery of the alcoholic

who still stumbles in the darkness.

One short block from this room.

We need it to ensure the recovery

of a child being born tonight

destined for alcoholism.

We need it to provide in

keeping with our 12th step,

a permanent haven for all alcoholics

who in the ages ahead confined in A.A.

that rebirth that brought us back to life.

We need it because we more

than all others are conscious

of the devastating effect

of the human urge for power

and prestige, which we must

ensure can never invade A.A.

We need it to ensure

A.A. against government

while insulating it against anarchy.

We need it to protect A.A.

We need it so that Alcoholics Anonymous

and Alcoholics Anonymous alone

is the ultimate repository

of its 12 steps, its 12 traditions

and all of its services.

We need it to ensure that

changes within A.A. come only

as a response to the needs

and wants of all A.A.

and not of any few.

We need it to ensure that the

doors of the halls of A.A.

never have locks on them, so

that all people for all time

who have an alcoholic problem

may enter these halls unasked

and feel welcome.

We need it to ensure that

Alcoholics Anonymous never asks

of anyone who needs us, what

his or her race is, what his

or her creed is, what his

or her social position is.

(peaceful music)

- So the Conference is responsible

to help guide A.A.

today and in the future,

and GSO is responsible

for implementing their recommendations.

Today we meet the person who leads GSO,

Bob W.

- Glad to be here.

- Bob's title

is General Manager, which is comparable

to an executive director

at any large nonprofit.

But this role comes with

some key differences.

The General Manager must

have at least 10 years

of continuous sobriety in A.A.,

along with extensive

A.A. service experience.

The GM works closely with our two boards,

that's the General Service Board

and AA World Services Board,

the General Service Conference

and the Fellowship at large.

That's US, Canada, and abroad.

So the person in this key role

must also have a deep understanding

of how the service structure functions.

But on the day-to-day in the office.

- What I do is I provide

leadership for those employees

for the AAWS employees.

GSO has about a hundred employees

between A.A. World Services

and A.A. Grapevine.

So I like to say that

I provide leadership.

You lead people and manage things.

And so we talk a lot about

in A.A. in our principles

of delegating responsibility.

From the day that I got here,

about three and a half years ago,

I committed to infuse the principles

of Alcoholics Anonymous

into the operations

of the General Service Office.

And that's what I try

to do a day at a time.

And again, that translates

to servant leadership,

which is a principle based leadership,

the right of decision.

Our Third Concept, I try

to exercise as a leader

to the various department heads

and people that report to me.

And I try to lead by example

to all of those managers

and directors to do the same,

to allow them to be able

to make decisions.

Another principle we hear

about is the right to be wrong

and how we're not punitive in A.A.

Other principles like the

right of participation

and how important that is.

And we hear in A.A., a good

idea can come from anywhere.

And so I allow for participation

and I want to hear from others.

So that's what I try to do a day at a time

and try to put things in

place throughout the office

to allow for that to happen.

Maybe I lead the General Service Office.

I'm a leader in the General Service Office

and I say a leader

because my leadership style is more one

of servant leadership.

Really principle-based leadership.

It's a we program

and it's a we office,

to try to simply state

what the General Service

Office is difficult

because it supports so much.

It supports all the members and

groups of the US and Canada,

but really around the world.

There's 62 other General Service Boards

and/or General Service

Offices around the world

that are autonomous from us.

But we bring experience,

strength and hope to them.

So many, many groups

and many members require

assistance in carrying the message of A.A.

and we try to help

facilitate that process.

And that happens in a number of ways.

Literature, podcasts, all

sorts of different services

to help members and groups

to carry the message.

Our office is a repository

of shared experience

with many members and

groups who've contacted us,

who we've helped or have

shared what they've done

and we've collected their experience

and we share it with other

groups who need that help.

The General Service

Office is very much like

any other business in a lot of ways,

but it's a spiritual business.

When we say to visitors, welcome

to your General Service

Office, we really mean it.

It truly is their office.

But it's kind of a lot.

- It is a lot.

- There's a lot there.

But thank God for the slogans

of Alcoholics Anonymous One Day at a Time.

My sponsor has moved me

into the nanosecond most

of the time, so I can keep stress free.

I try to do that and, yeah.

- Well, you're in high demand.

- Yep, absolutely.

- In the past couple of

years, you've traveled a lot.

Can you tell us a bit

about why it's important

for the General Manager to travel?

- Well, it's definitely

a part of what I do,

and there's different reasons

why I go to various places,

countries, or states or provinces.

One of the big pieces of my

travel are regional forums,

which are gatherings to allow

for members of the Fellowship

to meet members of the

General Service Board,

the corporate boards and the office,

and ask questions of any

kind and share information.

And so one of the parts

of my role is a co-chair

of those regional forums.

I do that with Scott H.

The chair of the General Service Board.

But I've also traveled by

invitation to local areas.

I choose those based upon

the requests that come in.

I have to balance that

between the time I need

to spend in the office as well.

And internationally, I traveled to Poland

for the 50th anniversary

celebration of A.A. in Poland

and also Portugal.

Portugal held an international

convention in October.

And those international

trips usually in most cases

are trustees at large.

And the person on our

international assignment

goes on those trips.

And sometimes there's

reasons that I might go.

In the case with Poland,

there was a real solid

business purpose behind that.

We've been doing an awful lot of work

with licensing our

literature internationally.

And in Portugal, they

asked me specifically

to give a presentation

on our licensing process

and the history of our licensing.

And it was just an incredible experience.

I found a story of a

person who was very pivotal

and the work that she went

through to be able to translate

that book into Portuguese

was unbelievable.

And so it was great to be

able to be there to give

that presentation, to answer questions

and to share what we do and how we do it.

- The world is growing

more and more virtual.

Why is it so important to

physically go to these locations?

- You know, I think it

comes down to the root

of Alcoholics Anonymous

with one member sitting down

with another, sharing their

experience, strength and hope.

And not that we don't see

that happen virtually,

it happened, people got

sober through that time.

But there's something

about just being together

and meeting people and be able

to build those relationships.

And there were many members

from other countries

around the world that

attended those conventions,

not just us from the

United States and Canada,

and some of them were

international delegates

to our world service meeting.

And so we ate together, we went

to meetings together while we were there,

we got to know each other.

And so you forge those relationships.

And then you fast forward

to our World Service Meeting

that we just had in the end of October.

And there were several folks there,

including the representatives

from both Poland and Portugal.

But there were people there

from Brazil, Venezuela, Mexico,

a lot of other countries.

And so just that more

tighter one-on-one connection

of being there together in that

moment with the individual,

that was really paramount

in translating the big book

into Portuguese, being able

to see her and give her a hug

and just be in that space, it

just couldn't have happened.

- Okay, let's step back from

the international stage.

I want to go back to something

you said a few minutes ago.

We were talking about

how the GSO serves groups

in the US and Canada.

How do we make sure that

we do that effectively?

- Yeah, it's challenging.

We have a service structure that goes

through the group level of a

GSR to a district, to an area,

to an assembly, to the

General Service Conference,

to the General Service Board.

And the office is wielded around

that General Service

Board and the Conference.

Yet there's members who

are not connected to that,

that never see that, that

will raise their hand

on social media sometimes and other places

and say, why is our money

getting spent like that?

But they're not necessarily talking

with delegates and that type of thing.

So it is very challenging.

- Yeah. Yeah.

All right. Full plate.

Lots of challenges.

What about the highlights?

- Oh, highlights.

I think some of the changes

that we've made at GSO

in really all to the good

speaking of that process,

the stronger desire

to deliver background in English, French

and Spanish at the same time

and what it takes to do that.

So our translation

processes were in great need

of revision.

And also our international

licensing was another function

that was very challenging.

Licensing our literature around the world

is a lot of demand for that,

large number of requests come in for that.

And translating the

actual literature itself

and then licensing it for

distribution to other countries.

So we created a language

services department

to handle all of the document translation,

to put some focus around the function.

And so there's much more clarity now,

which I'm so excited

about, to open the door

to actually translate our

literature into other languages.

But it's not just our Big

Book, it's our 12 and 12,

it's our pamphlets

and the other incredible

lifesaving literature that we have.

So those are things to me

that have been very exciting.

I think on top of all of it, we have

incredible comradery among each other.

And all of this work that

we've done together has brought

some great feeling

and really like, you

know, living the 12 steps,

part of the 36 principles,

I'm confusing the principles

into the operations.

And, you know, we get

along, we like each other

and you know, we do good work together.

- I'm sure there's many,

but was there a moment

or two that's left a lasting impact on you

during your time as GM?

- I was in Cuba in 2022, I believe it was.

And it was amazing to be there.

A.A. was having a very

difficult time there.

And so I attended their conference

and their conference

was really struggling.

And I think about the challenges we have

and to see that kind

of struggle, you know,

inflation just through the roof

and yet watching them all

come together to still find

a way to do the work of

Alcoholics Anonymous,

but seeing those kinds of things,

this role is way bigger than me.

And this is a movement

of Alcoholics Anonymous

and amazing things happen.

- And those of us that

work at GSO are reminded of

how spiritual that work can be.

- Yep, absolutely.

I think the lasting impact of the work

that happens here at the

General Service Office,

that's fed from all the

members of the groups

and how we're all part of the same team.

And at the end of the day,

sometimes we get involved

in a lot of the details

of the structure and the

way that our assemblies work

and our conference works

and all of those things are

really, really important.

But one thing I think it's

important to always remember

is that, how does it transmit?

How does it find the next

still suffering alcoholic?

I remember a very big

argument in a local area

where I come from in Western Massachusetts

several years ago, who argued,

should we be putting When

and Where meeting lists

in the local library?

And some thought it might be crossing

a tradition for whatever reason.

And it was a very big debate.

And it turned out that

what won the day was yes,

they could go into the libraries.

And about six or eight months later,

I remember a speaker got up to the podium

and talked about how they

were at the end of their rope

and they were at their local library

and picked up a meeting

list of When and Where.

And it made me think back to that

and how important that was.

And you know, that's an

example from the local level.

But things like that are happening

here at GSO all the time.

And we don't necessarily

hear it or know it.

I think it's important to

just remember, you know,

who we are and what we're

doing and how it transmits.

- Thank you Bob.

- Thank you.

(upbeat music)

- To find a meeting near you

or a meeting online,

download the Meeting Guide

app on your mobile device.

For more information about A.A.,

please visit our website at aa.org.

- Bob spoke on how one

of the highlights in his time here as GM

has been the establishment and success

of the new Language Services Department.

A.A. World Services is a

three language organization.

That means to the extent

possible, we make our print

and digital content

available in English, French

and Spanish.

Roberto, a visitor to GSO

from Miami, is a great example

of the importance of carrying

the A.A. message in Spanish.

- So my name is Roberto, I'm an alcoholic.

I am from Miami, Florida, born and raised.

I got here at 25 years old.

I'm currently going on 31.

Yeah, about five years clean now.

I found my home group immediately

and I have not changed

my home group ever since.

My home group is a Spanish

speaking home group.

My first language was Spanish,

despite the fact that I was born here,

my parents have lived here for many years.

I choose to be there

I think mainly because

I didn't have any other

experience of an English group.

Honestly, I haven't had the experience.

This is probably about third time

that I shared an experience

or I talked about A.A.

or I talked about a testimony

or anything of that matter in English.

Yeah, the second time was this morning

when I shared at the meeting of the GSO.

My experience in Spanish groups of A.A.,

Hispanic groups of A.A.,

is they showed me a very strong presence

of brotherhood immediately.

And I think I was looking for that.

I was looking for that

and that helped a lot.

I think that I stopped

fighting the obsession

and I started to hope

and desire for my group to be open

so that the message could

continue to be sent out.

You know, if somebody

comes or wants to come in

and the doors are closed, what am I doing?

But I have to do everything I

can to maintain the doors open

and maintain unity within my group.

- Where did that need come from?

- It was based on the services

I started to partake in,

it was based on the

experiences I was acquired

because my sponsor motivated me

to always have a service.

And it started off with something

very simple, in Spanish,

they're called 'guardias'

(Spanish) or guards,

which is the themes of the week

or the coordinators of

the week for a meeting.

'Cause in our group, they change,

every day is a different coordinator.

And it started with that.

Next thing you know,

I'm in charge of events.

Next thing you know, I'm secretary.

Next thing you know, I'm treasurer.

Next thing you know, I'm the coordinator.

I don't know exactly most of

these words, I don't know how

to say them in English 'cause I

never did anything in English.

It's all been in Spanish,

but in, in Spanish it's

called the coordinator of.

(Roberto speaking in Spanish)

The table of services.

I'm not sure exactly how it is in English.

I haven't really read it,

any of the information or any

of the literature in English.

Everything is in Spanish for me.

And when I got my first

service as the coordinator,

the head coordinator of

the group, I experienced

so much and I learned so much.

And I started to create

character and the personality

and actually like be

able to defend myself.

And next thing you know,

I get another service.

I haven't stopped serving ever since.

And then within my third, fourth year,

I started traveling constantly.

I started to go to New

York, Chicago, Atlanta,

Oklahoma, Texas.

And I started to experience

what the literature spoke

to me about, but I couldn't

actually visualize.

- And what was that?

- I started to experience

how big this really was.

How big, like I said, I don't

know how to say it in English,

but I think it's how

the heart of A.A. pumps

through the veins of all the groups.

I think it's something like that, right?

I went to Oklahoma,

I never imagined myself going to Oklahoma.

And I had like an out body experience

because of the service,

not because I saw anything.

I just felt like I was

accomplishing something

that would help my group stay open.

I think that's what it was.

But the greatest experience

I had was going to Mexico.

- Tell us that story.

- So there was a service for Mexico

and I couldn't cover it

because at the time I was going

through financial struggles

and two members of the group said, listen,

most of us can't go.

They bought the ticket

probably a few hours

before going to the airport.

I was still debating whether

I should just say F it

and not go.

Someone told me, go, you have to go.

I promise you it'll be worth it.

Like the idea was that

members of the group

that I was gonna go visit

were just gonna push me aside.

And it was like, ah, it's American guy.

He's young, he's 30 years old.

That's what I thought.

The way that these guys took care

of me when I arrived to the group.

I mean, I've never seen

something like that.

It was incredible.

There was so many people there.

I felt a presence.

I covered my service.

I spoke in front of like

about a hundred people

and I shared my experience.

I stepped down and I went

to the bathroom and I started crying

'cause I couldn't believe where I was.

I couldn't believe how big this was.

I couldn't believe how all

these people at some point got

the same opportunity that

I got of this information

that I think you guys facilitate, right?

I couldn't believe that I was

granted a second opportunity

at life to see and

witness all these things.

I couldn't believe it,

it was incredible.

I guess it's kind of

like a paradox, right?

Or something illogical

that two hours or an hour

and a half in a room with

other people talking,

but sharing those experiences

of what they've gone through

is how he stay sober.

I can't believe I've

stayed sober for so long.

I can't believe most of the,

I can't believe this

is happening right now.

I can't believe I got my son back.

I can't believe that my mom

could sleep at night now.

But it's there.

It's there.

And I'm witnessing it all firsthand.

There's a saying in in our

groups in Spanish that says

that the service doesn't recover.

It maintains.

I like to think that the service has done

so much for me in the

last two to three years

to make me visualize

where I'm heading more

than anything in the world.

(bright music)

(Roberto speaking in Spanish)

(bright music)

- And that concludes season

one of Our Primary Purpose.

We hope you've enjoyed listening

as much as we've enjoyed producing it,

and we cannot wait to

bring you season two,

which is already in the works.

Be sure to subscribe

and stay tuned for a very special

bonus episode coming soon.

And in the meantime, as

always, keep coming back.

(bright music)

- In this podcast, we respect

the anonymity of A.A. members.

Last names are shared only

for those who are not in A.A.

Thank you for listening

to Our Primary Purpose,

a podcast produced by the

General Service Office on behalf

of the Fellowship of Alcoholics Anonymous

in the US and Canada.

(bright music)