Take five minutes to think about - and, perhaps, even answer - the following question: Am I Committed to Myself?

Do your actions, when taken together, confirm or confound self-commitment? Has what you've done so far today been conducive to you being the best that you can be?

The interesting thing is that it doesn't really matter how you answer the question. Because the key thing, right now, at this moment, is that you can start doing the right things, the right way. It's never too late to start or re-start being committed.

In an age when we're encouraged to delegate, when we can have someone clean our house, press our shirts, cut the grass and deliver our evening meal, it's a little disconcerting for many when they realize that, when it comes to looking after your own state of mind... you're on your own.

Nobody else can do this for you. Sure enough, you can read up on the research that confirms that you can, quite literally, rewire your brain. You can watch or listen to the advice of others. But, when push comes to shove, it's you - and only you - who can put in the work. And, make no mistake about it, work it is.

The comments of a TV commentator, on Usain Bolt's winning the 100m at the London Olympics, made the point that, in an age where we've become used to instant celebrity, it is a refreshing lesson to realize that these guys have reached the pinnacle of performance through good, old-fashioned, hard work.

Now, that's what you're going to have to do too. The fact is, though, nobody's asking you to devote hours on end to enduring physical stress and pain. Nobody's asking you to pump iron or drag half a tractor around a field behind you (Bolt's training methods really are good old-fashioned!). Nobody's even suggesting that you need to break sweat!

In fact, it is suggested that you do less. Because less is more when done in a focused fashion. So, have you got five minutes - today and every day - to train yourself to reach the pinnacle of performance?