Self-regulation, the systematic effort to direct thoughts, feelings, and actions towards the attainment of one's goals, is receiving importance in the psychological and educational literatures. Goals are involved across the different phases of self-regulation, first as forethought, then in performance control, and finally in self-regulation. This article addresses the operation of goals in self-regulation to include the influence of goal properties and other goals-related factors. The goal properties of specificity, proximity, and difficulty are crucial to the enhancement of self-regulation. For counselors working with students and clients, it may be necessary initially to assign goals while simultaneously teaching them goal-setting strategies. Effective goal setting requires that people set a long-term goal, break it into short-term, attainable subgoals, monitor progress and assess capabilities, adjust the strategy and goal as needed, and set a new goal when the present one is attained. This multi-step plan is key to promoting healthier human functioning. (JDM)