Savor summer's "Sunday" and make a plan for "Monday"...

We've had what I call the Friday night of summer (June), we're closing in on Saturday (July), and the slower Sunday (August) is upon us. I experience a huge letdown as summer ends, but I always feel better if I have a full "To Do" list and calendar for Monday (September).

Busy people are already filling their calendars for September, so it makes sense to get a jump on things and spend at least a couple of days now thinking about who you want to meet with, companies you want to target for a job search, reinvention ideas you want to explore, industry meetings you want to attend and overall work+life goals you want to set for the fall.

If you devote some August time to planning, you'll be able to go full steam ahead post Labor Day--and you won't be sidetracked by the flurry of back-to-school and general post-summer activity. So many of my coaching clients put off summer planning and then can't catch their breath until the end of September. By that point they feel crunched for time with just two months before the holiday season slowdown begins.

Though September signals the last quarter of the year, there's always a refreshing element that feels like a beginning. With some strategic thinking now, you'll be ready to hit the ground running on "Monday" and move in new work+life directions.