The Tao – Step 10The Tao – Step 10
Tao of Our understanding Alcohol Recovery Podcast
Conversation focuses on AA Step 10 and how Taoist ideas support ongoing personal inventory, quick amends and humility in recovery. The speakers share stories and readings to show how small, daily corrections can ease resentment and deepen spiritual practice.
44:34•1 Jun 2026
Step 10, the Tao, and Keeping Your Side of the Street Clean
Episode Overview
- Step 10 is a continuous practice of personal inventory that includes recognising both helpful and harmful behaviour.
- Promptly admitting when wrong and making immediate amends prevents resentment and emotional “pile-ups”.
- Gratitude lists and daily reflection help recall past guidance and reduce fear during difficult moments.
- Taoist ideas of humility, acceptance and self-mastery support focusing on changing oneself rather than others.
- Small, honest corrections in the moment are easier than dealing with long-festering issues later on.
“Step 10 makes us be alive to ourselves and to what's going on right now. And not have things pile up.”
Curious about how others navigate their sobriety journey? This conversation from the Tao of Our Understanding Alcohol Recovery Podcast brings together Buddy C, Libby, Drew, Lou and Brian to chat about Step 10 of AA and how it lines up with Taoist wisdom. The group starts with a light “synchronistic moment” about chocolate chai tea, using it as a playful reminder that life has its own flow.
From there, they move into the heart of Step 10: “Continued to take personal inventory and when we were wrong promptly admitted it.” Buddy stresses that inventory isn’t just about faults: “It’s a full inventory, not just a personal inventory of how we mess up.” That means noticing good behaviour too, and building gratitude lists to avoid forgetting what’s working when fear or crisis hits.
You’ll hear real-life stories of quick amends: Brian apologising to a restaurant hostess, Drew circling back mid-run to say sorry to a dog-walker, and Buddy mending a strained business relationship even when he felt technically “right”. These moments show how prompt admissions can cool that “hot, burning” resentment before it grows, much like Clifford the Big Red Dog swelling with every lie.
Verses from the Tao Te Ching—especially 33, 61, 63 and 66—frame Step 10 as a path of humility, acceptance and quiet strength: “If you stay true to yourself, you will never be lost.” This episode suits anyone in recovery who wants practical, day-to-day tools with a spiritual twist—spot-check inventories, daily reviews, and gentle reminders to “stop fighting” and “live and let live.” It asks a simple but sharp question: what would your day look like if you made things right while they’re still small?
Libby weaves in quotations from Wayne Dyer, Al-Anon literature and Kevin Griffin, linking Step 10 with mindfulness, self-mastery and the serenity prayer.
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