It's not a typo and I'm not referring to something someone else did that 'floored' me. I am  talking about the 'flawed' me, those parts I wish weren't, but nonetheless, are me. The other day, I really, really felt like a cup of coffee and a rose rusk; the worst possible snack for someone trying to be gluten free and lose weight. I tried to resist but ended up folding like a pack of cards. It was delicious and I thoroughly enjoyed the treat, although my immune-system didn't.

We do it all the time, overindulge in food, drink, work, shopping... the opportunities are endless. Yet even knowing how much we are going to regret our action later is not enough to help us resist the urge in the moment. It's the marshmallow test in action. When young children were offered the option of eating one marshmallow immediately or waiting 15 minutes and being rewarded with two marshmallows, two out of three kids couldn't resist and ate the one marshmallow.

This experiment uncovered one of the most powerful indicators of success; our capacity to delay gratification. Self discipline or self-control, is defined as our ability to resist short term temptation and follow plans that are beneficial for the future. Hard to do but worth the effort.

So how do we cultivate this more mature way of thinking? We start by identifying what areas we lack self control in. This awareness is the first step. If we know where we are vulnerable, we can plan to avoid temptation and refrain from harmful action. We can leave our computer at home on weekends away, or at work when we go home. We can rid our house of cigarettes and junk food or have our gym bag in the car and go straight there from the office.

Self mastery is challenging and it helps to make a realistic commitment to change with either yourself or someone else. A few years ago, I made a public commitment to clean up my speech during a 100-day challenge. It actually took 300 days to start controlling my temper and speak more gently when I was irritated or irritable and it's something I'm still working on.

One of the benefits of working with a life coach is being accountable to someone else to stay on track. Pride can be a great motivator! So if you have an area of your life you want to work on, get in touch, you know where I am!