From Adam Goucher/Running the edge
“I am going to be the first high school runner to run under fifteen minutes in the 5K in Colorado. I am going to win the high school national championship.” These were just two of my goals going into my senior year of high school cross-country…I made posters with these and other goals in large print. They hung on the wall of my bedroom and were the last thing I saw before I turned out the lights to sleep. I told my family, my friends, and even reporters about what I wanted to do. My goals were written down in notebooks, hung on the door of my locker, and sitting on the tip of my tongue. By posting them and saying them out loud, I made them real.
I have been accused of being brash, cocky, and overconfident during my career. Some people have noted this as a flaw in my character; others, a strength. I have never been one to hide or suppress my goals from public view. Even though I have not accomplished every single goal I have declared to others, my sharing them with my coaches, my family, my friends, my teammates, and even the media has helped me stay focused and kept me accountable to back up my words. I believe that if I had kept my dreams and goals private, I would not have accomplished even half of them. I needed to say them out loud.
Even though I would declare my goals to anyone who would listen, it was when I shared them with other runners that I felt the most impact. A stranger on the street does not understand what it takes to run a 5K or make an Olympic team, but runners are my kindred spirits. Proclaiming my biggest hopes and dreams to those who share an understanding with me always has a greater impact.”
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Olympic Marathon Trials from Paul Sanft on Vimeo.
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http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pWQ80N1SjM8&feature=player_embedded