It's time for New Year's resolutions - a chance to set yourself up for success in 2004. It won't take long, but it will take a commitment.

Typically, most of us want to lose weight, exercise more or earn more money. These are the most popular New Year's resolutions. However, all good intentions usually fly out the window by the second week in January.

There's hope, according to a North Georgia life coach.

"Make your New Year's resolution very personal," said Candis Kent Stephens, CMP, a life coach who owns Results Unlimited near Gainesville. "For most of us, the best resolution is one that's derived from a process of self-examination. A resolution made in five minutes is just as easily broken."

Stephens suggests asking the question, "What is it that I can do for myself to make myself better every day?"

Sure, dieting or getting more exercise are about self-improvement, but to create a meaningful and long-term change means following a process to arrive at improvement.

"Spend 10 minutes, two or three times a week, to think about next year," she said. "Think about your work, your personal life and the people you're closest to. Then, develop a goal that gives you a meaningful change in one - just one - of these arenas. Once you've identified that goal, write it down."

Stephens recommends putting that hand-written goal where you'll see it from time to time, but not every day.

"If you post it on your refrigerator or on the bathroom mirror, it may soon become invisible, so put it in your checkbook or wallet, or perhaps in a drawer in your desk. Or put it on a sticky-note in your calendar and move it forward each month. Revisit the goal every couple of weeks and see how you're doing."

For health care professionals, this type of exercise is particularly challenging. First, finding the time to sit still for 10 minutes between work and family demands can seem impossible.

"Get up 10 minutes earlier while the house is quiet to do your goal-setting, or carve out 10 minutes at the end of the day," she said.

Second, health care professionals are usually the last ones to take care of themselves because they spend all day focused on other people's needs.

"Women are particularly prone to putting themselves last," she said. "Focus on self-care, even if it's something small. Give your goal a time and place in space, so that you've given the commitment legs.

"Make your goal manageable, yet real," she said. "And it's all about making it meaningful for you. It's OK to be selfish, because people in health care spend most of their waking hours thinking about and doing for other people.

"It may sound corny, but when you take care of yourself, you're a much better caregiver to others."