What to do when you can't think of what to do

I've not been actively working in or on my business since September 2024. After the WordPress debacle began I just... stopped. WordPress is dead or dying, so what's a WordPress designer/developer/witch to do?

This has been the weight on my shoulders for several months now. I'm not working, so I don't know what to do with myself. I have no ... purpose.

Yes, I'm a mother to two wonderful children, and a wife to an amazing man, and the caretaker to our dream home. But... I'm left wondering what to do with my time after the snacks, naps, school pickups, meal prep and bed times.

I sit at my desk every Tuesday (our coworking time inside The Fiery Well Discord) and stare into space for at least half of the first Pomodoro® session. And today, I'm spending the other half writing the very article you are reading now.

Because I'm tired of asking the question: what do I do next?

My brain is wandering aimlessly around looking for something it can do. I can do what ever I want. And I'm overwhelmed by my choices. Excuse the pun, but I'm Frozen.

I journaled about this a few days ago, hoping that would help. And it did some. But so did something else.

For several hours in a local coffee shop I was the only patron. Between sipping my mocha and journaling I watched the staff. They talked amongst themselves, tidied cups, restocked beans, wiped counters, and otherwise took the simplest of actions when you can do nothing else at work.

They cleaned.

As I watched one of them haul out the Windex and shine the glass of the front door then move to wipe away the tiniest of smudges from the dome of the display cases, it brought back my own memories of working in a coffee shop oh so many years ago.

When there was nothing to do: you cleaned.

It accomplishes a goal–because something is always in need of a clean–and it passes the time while you wait for the next customer. It's physical activity. It's meditative. It could be even seen as devotional if you want to get deep about it. It gives the brain a chance to organize itself. Run amok. Or find the triggers for what it wants to do next.

It was a reminder that I do know what to do when I don't know what else to do.

Clean.

So that is what I will do today. I will light a favorite candle, get the dust cloth and cleaner out, and begin my work. Books will be returned to their shelves. Papers to their proper place. Dishes to the sink. Cords hidden away.

Today–to clear my mind–I will clear my desk. Perhaps my whole office.

And I will remember that when I don't know what to do, I will clean.

I will clean my way to clarity.

And if I don't find clarity... well. At least my space will be clean.