There's a tutorial collapsed in the top right corner of the screen. You need to click it to see the next objective. You can also press esc and then click keybinds to see a list of controls.
More information here: https://itch.io/t/820164/any-ideas-that-you-want-added-to-the-game-post-it-here
I'm starting to think the UX of this game is designed to maximize friction. I'm not sure why though. Sometimes you can be staring directly at the text telling you what you need to do next, and it just doesn't register.