If you ever read the Dilbert Blog or any of Scott Adams' non-Dilbert writing then you know about his thoughts on affirmations.

Here is a link to a recent blog entry about this: http://dilbertblog.typepad.com/the_dilbert_blog/2006/10/affirmations.html

As an experiment I'm trying them. I working on two. Neither are physics defying impossible, like regrowing a limb (I have all my limbs). Both are attainable but not too easy.

One of the affirmations is the time in which I will finish the 2007 Chevron Houston Marathon. This one is measurable and the time goal is ambitious but not completely out of my reach. I'm writing that I will finish this marathon in 5:08:00. This will require maintaining a pace of between 12:01 min. pace per mile (5:15 finish) and 11:27 min. pace per mile (5:00 finish). I have run at those paces but for shorter distances. I will not alter my present training. Just use the affirmations. The 5:08:00 is an hour off my 2004 Houston Marathon time. I finished the 2006 Freescale in Austin in about 5:39.

When I registered for race I put my estimated completion time at 5:30:00. So, I'm a realist sometimes. I would rather start with the slower group than fall behind the faster group. I'll run this race the way I run all of them: keep moving until I get to the finish line. If it happens at 5:08 then hurray for affirmations - if not then only thing that would be different is my time. I still get the t-shirt, medal and other finishers' swag.

The other goal is longer term and not so easy to measure.