Is 'making a strong commitment' a good idea?
To make a  strong commitment,  you want to cultivate right effort by making a continuous effort, by hanging out with wise spiritual friends, by balancing energy with concentration and by not doing things that suck the energy out of you like reacting to your arising defilements, eating too much and getting lost in mental proliferation.

As Ajahn Chah says "Just do it".

Edit 

One could reflect on death. This can really be motivating because it lets us know we are pressed for time not just on the surface but in the heart as well.