How to improve: Classical line of the Caro-Kann

I play really badly in the classical line of the Caro-Kann:
FEN:rn1qkbnr/pp2pppp/2p3b1/8/3P4/6N1/PPP2PPP/R1BQKBNR w KQkq - 3 6

From this position, I have lost 68% of my games as black, and all four games in this position as white. As white, I stopped playing this, going for the two-knights variation instead, but as black, I face this position a lot. How do I improve? Also: what to improve? Also: what is even going on here?

www.chessgames.com/perl/chess.pl?page=286&eco=B18&node=553125
View those games. It will help your understanding of the Classical CK.

@sjcjoosten
Plan: Get pawns on e6 and c6 to control the strong e5 break. Connect knights with Nf6 and Nd7. Castle, and play on the queenside.

@sjcjoosten, I know this opening very well. The move you probably don't know about is h4.
Other common ideas include knight sacrifices on e6 or f7, queenside castling, and middlegame attacks, whereas the Lobron System with Ne4, which is what I play, leads to an equal safe endgame.
Here is a sample game:

Also, here is a study on the Classical Caro-Kann.

@ChessMathNerd That's a very concrete plan that makes a lot of sense to me, thank you!
@ryan121 I have looked at some, but I don't know what to look for: all I see is a sequence of moves. I fail to see plans (perhaps because the opponent stops them, or perhaps because I don't see the strength)
@NNWill I faced h4 a lot, and have learned by engine analysis that responding with h5 is already a mistake, so I now respond with h6 instead, but I don't really understand why. Thanks for sharing this study though!

@sjcjoosten Without looking into an engine analysis, my guess as to why h5 is bad is this: h5 gives white something to strike at. The pawn is weak, and often undefended, particularly after O-O by black. Also, the idea of g4!! by white is much stronger since it hits h5 directly. After h6, if white plays g4, there is no immediate pawn tension and black has one move to react to the g5 advance before his kingside is forced open.

en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Caro%E2%80%93Kann_Defence?wprov=sfla1
This is Basic plans.

There are at least three other different ideas in the Caro-Kann then Bf5 . 1e4 c6 2d4 d5 3Nc3 dxe4 4Nxe4 Nf6 5 Nxf6+ exf6 OR gxf6 . also there is 4 ... Nd7 (Just don't get mated by the trap 5Qe2 Ngf6 ?????? 6 Nd6# Mate) Good Luck

I dislike 4... Nd7 because of 5 Ng5, which has lots of traps but I think black is okay after 5 ... Ngf6 (h6? Ne6! fxe6?? Qh5+ g6 Qxg6#) 6 Bd3 e6 (h6? Ne6! fxe6?? Bg6#) 7 N1f3 Bd6 (h6? Nxe6!) 8 Qe2 h6! 9 Ne4 Nxe4 10 Qxe4 Nf6 11 Qe2 Qc7