And here we are, done with summer. Did you do everything you wanted to? No, me neither. But that’s normal for me, since my eyes are usually bigger than my schedule when it comes to summer plans. I do better in the fall, with its cooler weather and shorter days, not to mention the back-to-school vibe. You can practically sniff the fresh-start possibilities in the air.

Fall is actually a great time for revised career patterns or new starts at work. But it’s easy to lose that burst of energy so you’ll want to grab hold before things get too hectic. You have about three months before we’re into the next season (and deep into the holidays), so I have a three-part plan for you. Modify at will!

Part 1 — Career improvement

The word career can be tricky, since it often implies a path you’re diligently following. Feel free to let go of the vocabulary; for this step your career just means the larger milieu of your work, outside of a specific job. If you’re not in a job right now, you can still be in a career.

With that settled, here are two great career-refresh activities.

Join a professional association. These groups focus on a specific field or industry, providing support to workers entering, considering or already employed in that area. Despite the name, most are open to people at all levels of the work.

Why join? Because being part of an association can provide you: work friends outside of work, mentors and advisers in your field, learning and certification opportunities, and a chance to level-set your own experience in terms of work conditions, salary and management issues.

You can find associations by searching online for “association” plus the field.

Make a networking plan. This doesn’t have to be elaborate, in terms of frequency or reach. For example, if you were to connect with two people a month, you’d be doing great. Just a quick note to a former colleague, or an article forwarded to someone would be enough to keep you in touch even a little.

Part 2 — Job improvement

This can mean improving at your job, or trying to improve the job itself. In both cases, these steps can be part of the plan.

Schedule a review. In a surprising number of organizations, reviews happen rarely or only in a perfunctory manner. They’re not used for full impact, which means the worker may not come away with a growth plan or a sense of where the job is leading.

You can drop the label if you want, but scheduling a meeting can let you ask about ways to improve in your work, how to lay the path for moving up and, of course, if there’s a salary bump in your future. If you get a “no” to that last query, it’s also an opportunity to ask what might be needed to turn that into a “yes.”

Refresh yourself on company perks. Does your employer offer tuition reimbursement, or perhaps sponsorship for professional association dues (see above)? Are there opportunities to be mentored, or to cross-train to learn new skill sets? While larger companies outline these benefits on the corporate website, small companies may handle them on an individual basis — in which case, you’ll want to schedule that one-on-one as described above.

Part 3 — Self-improvement

And what about you, the individual? Improving your job and career are important, but they don’t mean much if you feel stuck personally. While the steps above could help you get unstuck, you can also make good headway by following more personal steps.

Set learning goals. These could be big ticket items, such as finishing a degree, but they could also be more localized, such as taking a public-speaking class. Or perhaps learning something completely removed from work, such as a new yoga discipline or an artistic pursuit. Sometimes the best way to refresh a work situation is to refresh the worker.

Make a decision. I read somewhere that people will mull a career change for three years or more before moving ahead. I actually think five or six years would be closer to the truth, but that’s a tomayto-tomahto kind of thing.

Whether it’s about changing careers or relocating or just getting a dog, the longer you delay a decision, the more mental bandwidth you’re using — which is keeping you from living your life fully. It’s a big deal, so even if your decision is to table the issue for now and revisit it in a year, that will help. Write that down, make an appointment with yourself, and let it go for now. Or, set an appointment with someone who will walk you through the steps to actually make the decision. One way or the other, you’ll be freeing yourself, which is a huge self-improvement.

Amy Lindgren owns a career consulting firm in St. Paul. She can be reached at alindgren@prototypecareerservice.com.