Self-control

Self-control includes emotional control and self-control of behavior. Self-control of behavior is the control of one’s own actions and influences. If a person was able to change his behavior here and now, but this applies only to a specific situation, this is a situational change in his own behavior. If a person has changed his behavior in general, fundamentally, this change is for a long time and concerns a large number of significant situations, it is said about self-control of behavior. Emotional self-control is the control of one’s own emotions and states. Most often, people complain about the lack of emotional self-control.

Self-control is one of the characteristics of freedom and responsibility of the individual. No self-control — no freedom, no responsibility, no personality.

Composure as a prerequisite for self-control

Composure is a state expressed by the phrase “everything is under control”, the readiness to act clearly and promptly. If you know how to turn on the state of composure, you start self-control at the same second. How to turn on collection? There are people who are more collected and less collected, but any of us can suddenly collect ourselves if necessary, and especially if a person knows the tricks of composure — simple tricks that effectively solve the problem. The chips of composure are collected (squinted) eyes, slightly pursed lips, set neck, completed gestures, Dare center, energy of activity, knowledge of the goal.

Can there be too much self-control?

Often there is an opinion that excessive self-control suppresses spontaneity, deprives a person of inner freedom and joy of life. Apparently, this is the result of a misunderstanding. There cannot be too much control, it is only important that the control is correct. If a person during self-control only strains and scolds himself, he has the wrong self-control. And if a person carefully controls not to strain during work, work positively, take time to rest and take on a difficult task wisely, ensuring a successful start and celebrating all significant successes, such control is always useful and will not be superfluous.

Without physical activity, self-control falls

Megan Outen, a psychologist, and Ken Cheng, a biologist (from Kelly McGonigal’s Willpower: How to Develop and Strengthen), from Macquarie University in Sydney, recently finished testing a new self-control treatment. And the data they received amazed them. They hoped for a positive result, but no one expected how massive the consequences would be. The experimental rabbits were six men and 18 women aged 18 to 50 years. After two months of treatment, they focused better and were less distracted. Attention spans reached 30 seconds, which is very commendable. But that was not all. The subjects smoked less, reduced their alcohol and caffeine consumption — although no one asked them about it. They ate less junk food and more healthy food. Less time spent watching TV and more time studying. Saved money and spent less on spontaneous purchases. Feel in control of your emotions. They even put things off less often and were less late for meetings. Good God, what is this wonderful drug and who will write me a prescription?

Treatment was by no means pharmacological. Miracles of self-control were created by physical exercises. Participants who had not previously exercised regularly were presented with a gym membership and encouraged to use it. In the first month, they practiced about once every seven days, but by the end of the second month, they were already visiting the gym three times a week. The researchers did not ask them for other changes, and yet, thanks to sports training, people seemed to have discovered a new source of strength in themselves and began to better control themselves in all areas of life.

Scientists have found that exercise is most like a panacea. To begin with, the benefits of exercise are immediate. Fifteen minutes on the treadmill reduces cravings: Researchers have unsuccessfully tried to tempt weight loss people with chocolate and smokers with cigarettes. The long-term effects of training are even more impressive. Not only do they relieve everyday stress, but they are just as powerful an antidepressant as Prozac. Most importantly, training strengthens the biological foundations of self-control by increasing baseline heart rate variability. When neuroscientists examined the brains of newly minted athletes, they found that they had an increase in both gray matter (nerve cells themselves) and white matter (neuron glia cells, which allow neurons to communicate quickly and efficiently). Physical exercise, like meditation, enlarges and accelerates the brain and primarily the prefrontal cortex.

When my students hear about this study, they immediately ask, “How much should I study?” I always answer: “How much are you ready?” In 2010, a review of 10 studies on the topic found that five-minute rather than hour-long exercise was the most effective for improving mood and reducing stress. So it’s not at all embarrassing — and very useful — just to walk around the house for five minutes.

Low self-control — high self-control according to Cattell

Self-control — purposefulness, strong will, the ability to control one’s emotions and behavior. The opposite of self-control is low discipline, indulgence follows one’s desires, addiction to moods, inability to control one’s emotions and behavior. See →