The Group Secretary Is Not the Boss

Key takeaway

The secretary with the notebook is not your boss. Tradition Nine's long form says a small group may elect its secretary, rotating leadership is best, and representatives are trusted servants who do not govern. That role does not own your membership. The only requirement is a desire to stop drinking. You can sit and listen.

Last updated: Tue Oct 06 2026 00:00:00 GMT+0000 (Coordinated Universal Time)

They had a notebook, and they knew what time the meeting started. You decided they were in charge of you. On the drive home you practiced an apology for being late, as if a latecomer could be removed from the rolls. You can stop rehearsing. The group secretary is not the boss.

A small group may elect its secretary. That is the long form of Tradition Nine. Rotating leadership is best. The job is supposed to move. Representatives are trusted servants. They do not govern. Tradition Two says the same thing in the short form: leaders are trusted servants; they do not govern. A notebook is not a gavel that can cancel your membership.

The only requirement for membership is a desire to stop drinking. The long form says membership ought never depend upon money or conformity. Being liked by the secretary is not on that list. You can be awkward, early, late, or silent and still belong.

If the fear is mixed with a body that is failing, call 911. If you are in a mental health crisis, call or text 988. NIAAA says alcohol withdrawal can be life-threatening when a person who drinks heavily over time stops suddenly. A meeting cannot manage that. Pleasing the person with the pen cannot either.

An elected notebook

What a secretary does in your group is local. One group wants them to keep a list of who is making coffee next month. Another mostly wants a greeting at the door. Each group should be autonomous except in matters affecting other groups or A.A. as a whole. You can ask, in a normal voice, what this group expects from that role. You are asking for a description, not for permission to exist.

Members conduct the meeting and determine the format. The person who opens the hour, often called the chair, follows that format: a few remarks, sometimes a reading, sometimes a question about whether anyone new wants to introduce themselves. That introduction is not mandatory. The secretary and the chair may be the same member tonight or two different people. Neither of them governs you. You do not have to laugh at their jokes. You do not have to explain your week to them in the hallway unless you want to.

If they look stern, that is a face. Faces are not law. You can sit somewhere else in the room. You can try a different meeting, because formats take on the feel of the local area and another group may feel less like a front office. You can also stay here and let them be a member who took a turn at service.

The paid office job is not this person

In a large metropolitan area, a central or intergroup committee often employs a full-time secretary. That is a job at a service center. Tradition Eight says service centers may employ special workers, and usual 12th Step work is never paid for. Do not mix that paycheck up with the member who volunteered, or was nudged, to be your group's secretary. One is employment. The other is a turn that is supposed to rotate.

If what scared you is that someone asked you to make the coffee, that is a different night. A service commitment is ordinary help a group may need. You can say no and still be a member. The ask does not prove the secretary owns the room. You can thank them and not take the task. Helping later is allowed. Helping tonight is not rent.

There are no dues or fees. You can sit and listen, or you can share. At most meetings, people talk about what drinking did to them and to the people around them, what they did to stop, and how they are living now. The secretary does not grade those shares. After the meeting, staying to talk is up to you. You can leave when the hour ends without checking out.

They cannot send you to treatment, either

NIDA says mutual-help groups such as A.A. are peer-led, not led by healthcare professionals, and not a substitute for treatment. The meeting is peer support. It is not detox. A secretary is not a clinician with authority over your care. If you need help finding treatment, call (800) 653-9376. The call costs you nothing. Treatment providers pay for the referral service. The line is not A.A., and it is not SMART Recovery. FindTreatment.gov lists programs. SAMHSA's National Helpline at 1-800-662-HELP (4357) is free, confidential, and offered in English and Spanish.

Tonight

Go to a meeting and let the secretary be a member with a job that rotates. Use the meetings search and confirm the listing, since those listings are not verified. You do not need an appointment with them. Sit down. If you were late, you were late. Desire to stop drinking is the requirement you walked in with. You do not turn it in to the notebook on the way out.

Additional Resources

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Common Questions

Can the group secretary kick me out?

No. The only requirement for membership is a desire to stop drinking. The long form of Tradition Three says membership ought never depend upon money or conformity. A secretary does not own that. Tradition Nine says representatives are trusted servants and they do not govern. The same idea is in Tradition Two: leaders are trusted servants; they do not govern. You can be late, quiet, or brand new and still keep the chair. A frown from the notebook is not an eviction.

Who is the secretary, if they are not in charge?

A small group may elect its secretary. That is the long form of Tradition Nine. Rotating leadership is best, so the role is not a permanent throne. The person may keep notes, greet people, or know what time the meeting starts. What the job looks like is up to that group, because each group is autonomous except in matters affecting other groups or A.A. as a whole. You can ask what they actually do. You do not have to treat the answer as a chain of command.

Is the secretary the same person as the chair?

Maybe tonight, maybe not. Members conduct the meeting and determine the format. The chair usually opens with a few remarks and follows that group's way of starting. The secretary is the elected role the tradition names. One member can wear both hats on a given night, or the group can split them. Either way they do not govern you. You do not have to approve the format to stay. Another group may divide the work differently.

What about the paid secretary at a big-city office?

That is a different chair. In a large metropolitan area, a central or intergroup committee often employs a full-time secretary. Service centers may employ special workers. Usual 12th Step work is never paid for, and that paid office job is the exception the tradition allows for employees. The member your home group elected is not that payroll. If someone asked you to make coffee, that request is ordinary help, and it is still a request. It is not proof that the secretary owns you.

What if I am afraid of them and also feel medically wrong?

Fear of a person with a notebook is not the same as withdrawal, and withdrawal needs care. Call 911 if this is a medical emergency. Call or text 988 if you are in a mental health crisis. NIAAA says alcohol withdrawal can be life-threatening when heavy drinking over time stops suddenly. A meeting cannot manage that. NIDA says mutual-help groups are peer-led and not a substitute for treatment. You can skip this group and try another when you are safe. No secretary has to approve the skip.