Having run two marathons in the past, I know firsthand the dedication and inner fortitude it requires to train for and complete a marathon. What marathon runners know about suffering can help us all learn how to cope with this tragedy and rise above it.

In retrospect, the officer's silence was a way of acknowledging that a young man had demonstrated a commitment to upholding his word. Perhaps the universe shined favorably upon me, too, for helping a fellow denizen of the planet.

It is a choice to persevere and sail on. Yet when a boat finds a place to dock on the other shore after a long journey, the sun sets on a beautiful portrait of commitment that has endured even the greatest odds. This is love.

Instead of expecting someone to make us feel special, let us do something to make ourselves feel special and loved on this Valentine's Day. We deserve love just because we are! And our ability to receive love makes us more able to pass that love on to others.

According to recent studies, you shouldn't worry so much when it comes to pointing out mistakes to someone who is experienced. Negative feedback won't crush their confidence, but it just might give them the information they need to take their performance to the next level.

Pursuing a more authentic resolution is ultimately not only going to get results, but those results will last and not come crashing down as so often happens with typical resolutions like weight loss, giving up chocolate, working out every day, etc.

For some people, I've noticed, saying you are going to do something feels just as good as actually doing it. How can we understand these promise-breakers, whose intentions start out both genuine and admirable, but who never seem to act on them?

You become the director, producer and actor of your own outcomes, from academic to career to healthy lifestyle goals. It's amazing what you can accomplish with positive thoughts.

You know you shouldn't do it. You know that if you keep calling and leaving messages he's going to think you are needy, or pathetic, or just plain crazy. You know that if you keep asking her if she's seen her ex-boyfriend, she's going to think you are insecure, or jealous, or even controlling.

I don't want to have trophies on my shelf showing how may home runs I hit. It's not about the ego validation or the fact that I "won the game" for the team. It's about believing in myself, believing in committing to doing whatever I want to do and then actually taking the action to do it.

Commitment is not about finding the perfect circumstance; it's about dictating a certain choice. It's not about making the right decision; it's about making a decision and then making it right.

The promises we make speak volumes about who we are. Whether your promise is as casual as committing to your partner that you'll eat better foods or as serious as eliminating abusive behavior, the promises we make -- to ourselves and others -- have tremendous power.

It would appear that we can't seem to commit to anything these days. And ironically, some are blaming the very social media that was invented to help us stay connected in the first place.