There are numerous factors that need to be taken into account if you will be able to achieve

your goals and be successful. One of the key factors is self-regulation. Your ability to influence yourself and to develop your ability to control your actions, your emotions, and even what you think will enable you to adapt to new challenges and situations, control the urge to act on impulse, and ultimately to achieve your goals.

To be self-regulated, you first need to decide what the goal is. Then you have to do what it takes to move yourself toward that goal while keeping track of your progress along the way. Along the way, you must control your behavior, as well as your emotions and your thoughts. Deciding what you want to accomplish, planning how to accomplish it, implementing the plan, and fighting off competing thoughts, ideas, or concerns is self-regulation.

You have to control your behavior using self-monitoring, self-evaluation, and also rewarding yourself along the way to the goal.

You have to direct and redirect yourself. Sometimes, depending on the situation, abandoning the goal may be the correct decision.

Self-control differs from self-regulation. It involves choices. You need to have self-control when two of your goals or rewards are in conflict. An example can be if a person has to choose between a small immediate goal or reward and a larger goal or reward that they will have to wait for.

Which to pick?

If the person can resist the small immediate reward and pick the bigger reward that they must wait for, that is an example of self-control.

A common enemy to both self-regulation and self-control is impulsivity. The ability to control your impulses is an important part of self-regulation. A simple definition of impulsiveness is a tendency to act quickly without taking into account the potential consequences of the things you do.

No forethought, no reflection on what you are doing, and not resisting impulsive actions will probably cause many problems. Doing or saying something without thinking or planning, allowing yourself to be too influenced by your emotions, seeking immediate gratification, or making split-second decisions without forethought can be disastrous.

When a person is unable to control their impulsivity, he or she may do things like have angry outbursts, break things, hit walls, etc. Psychologists may judge that to be an Impulse Control Disorder. If a person cannot control how they act or react, they may risk harming themselves or other people.

Arguing, fighting, destroying property, being disobedient, or defiant can result in eventual contact with law enforcement. This condition has to be dealt with if a person is going to be successful and accomplish the goals that make his or her life worthwhile, enjoyable, and satisfying.

Taking control of yourself can even impact your health. For example, if you don’t stop eating when your body tells you that you have eaten enough, you may get fat, or even obese.

Self-regulation can impact how you live, help you not waste your money, or even keep you out of jail. It impacts how well you function at school, at work, and in relationships with other people. A self-regulated population results in a well-functioning society.

— Dr. Joseph Switras provides clinical psychological services at United Health District in Fairmont to people age 5 and up.