Building Success on a False Foundation: My Interview on the PI Files Podcast.
What happens when you build your success on a false foundation? I recently joined Eric Peterson on the PI Files podcast to talk about my journey from being a pontificator with a dangerously out-of-control ego to a man who finally had to ask for help to survive. We discussed the illusion of “having it all,” […]
The Two Gifts: Survival & Sobriety
I don’t define myself as a liver transplant recipient. That didn’t change my life! It was a life-threatening situation, yes. But I did what the doctors told me to do. Diet, exercise, blah blah, and got fixed. It wasn’t easy. There were setbacks. Like the time I was rushed to the hospital in an ambulance […]
Serenitizing: Living on Your Pink Cloud in a World That Wants to Pop It
I remember the exact moment I realized I had clicked my heels together and finally made it back to Kansas. It wasn’t accompanied by a chorus of angels or a sudden, blinding flash of enlightenment. It was actually terrifyingly quiet. I woke up one morning and realized the crushing weight of financial terror was gone. […]
The Warnings We Ignore
Editor’s Note: If I had been working with a coach twenty years ago, my life would have taken a very different path. A good coach helps you decipher the noise in your life and forces you to stop and listen to the things you are desperately trying to ignore. The story below is exactly why […]
Peer Support: The Sacred Role of Advocate
One of the most beautiful words Jesus used for the Holy Spirit was not “judge,” “manager,” “controller,” or “rescuer.” He used the word Advocate. Jesus said to his disciples: “And I will ask the Father, and he will give you another Advocate to be with you always, the Spirit of truth, whom the world cannot […]
The Wizard of Oz Was a Fraud (And Your Actions Might Be Betraying You)
Look at the guy sweating over the controls at the top of this page. That is the exact moment the ‘Man Behind the Curtain’—which is just your own ego, outdated habits, and your expectations of other people—realizes he is completely out of control. When your own internal navigation fails like that, your life defaults to […]
The Geography of Grace: My New Life Started Across the Street from the Altar
Some places are more than buildings. They become characters in the story of your life. For me, a place like that is Christ Cathedral in Garden Grove, CA. Long before it was a Catholic Cathedral, it was the Crystal Cathedral—one of the most famous churches in America, built by televangelist Robert H. Schuller. Like many […]
The Legacy Lens: Is Your Past Drafting Your Present Reality?
What is the Legacy Lens? I’ve been talking a lot lately about C.A.L.M.—my specific framework for navigating life’s transitions without losing your integrity. It’s built on the foundations laid out by Don Miguel Ruiz in his book The Four Agreements. If you’re new here, you might hear me talk about “hitting a 10.” Most people […]
Getting Back To Calm
Last month, for the first time, I read The Four Agreements by Don Miguel Ruiz. I had heard about it for years. I finally picked it up. The simplicity of those principles struck me. Not because they were complex — but because they were direct. They weren’t about changing my world. They were about taking […]
Step Five: God Already Knows
Because, for this alcoholic, Step Five isn’t about informing God.
That realization didn’t come to me in a meeting or a workbook. It came to me at Catholic Mass, of all places — during one of those call-and-response moments I used to say on autopilot, when I was a child. A few weeks ago, the response was: “You have searched me, and you know me, Lord.”
The Johari Window: From Blind Spots to Breakthroughs in Coaching
The Johari Window: From blind spots to breakthroughs in coaching How the Johari Window can reveal blind spots, hidden strengths, and next steps in life coaching The Johari Window showed me… Take a moment to look at the famous image above. You’ll see that the Johari Window lays out four simple descriptions of the character […]
Not the Hero of Any Story
When I first got sober, I wasn’t looking to become anything. I wasn’t chasing healing or insight or a new identity. I was just trying to stay alive long enough to outlive my liver. Doctors told me to stop drinking or start saying goodbye. And they weren’t being dramatic. After 37 years of selling wine—and […]
I am Bill…
Editor’s Note:Every month, I share something from the heart—sometimes light, sometimes heavy, but always rooted in recovery. This month’s reflection is deeply personal. It’s about my journey back to faith and what it’s meant for my sobriety. I know we all walk different spiritual paths, and that’s something I honor. If you’re curious about how […]
When Tradition Six Taps You on the Shoulder
“An A.A. group ought never endorse, finance, or lend the A.A. name to any related facility oroutside enterprise…” Sounds formal, right? Like something meant for a lawyer or an accountant. But Tradition Six isn’t just a policy — it’s a protection. For me, it’s also a humbling reminder that even with the best intentions, I […]
Big Book 12 Stepping in Today’s World
I need to be crystal clear. What follows is one alcoholic’s view. It is not endorsed by AA, and I don’t even know if I’d find a single person to agree with me, but it is how I see it. No great studies or even research have been done to write this. It is off […]
