Self-Control | “Be Your Own Boss!”

We recently added a Live Chat feature to our website to assist visitors. Since our launch, we have had very few questions but several pranks! You may find this surprising, but the pranks really made me miss the classroom and the funny things kids can do. Of course, they need redirection (the purpose of virtue education), but they can say and do things that make you laugh.

One of the questions in our Live Chat was, “Why is self-control a virtue? I thought it was an expectation.” When I reflected upon this, it revealed how we often use the word “self-control.” Indeed, it can sound like an expectation because it is our “go-to word” for any behavior we deem out-of-control.

We know, however, self-control is a virtue related to temperance and means joyful mastery over one’s passions and desires. Or to use a phrase that Dr. Karen Villa recently shared with me, it helps us “be our own boss.”   She will use this as she counsels children in managing their behavior. Self-control helps to form good habits which enable us to control our wants and desires, yes, even in good things.

To put it another way, we don’t want to be controlled by our passions or our desires for created things. We want to be the “boss of ourselves” and joyfully live all the virtues.

Enjoy this video that is sure to bring a smile to your face and reaffirm the positive impact of virtue education.