Pt. 4 - My Life Changed & How You Can Change Too: Try My COMPASS Method for Identity & Direction

Hi I'm Dr. Dave, therapist and coach turned YouTuber. I help thoughtful, capable queer, curious and questioning men get clear on identity, direction in life and relationships. I am taking a few - up to 12 for now - FREE 30 minute coaching calls if you'd like to connect and learn about a 90-day program to craft your own Good Life Projects. Here's a link to my booking calendar - be sure tell me a bit about yourself in the message: https://www.drdavesgoodlifelab.com/bo... Episode guide: What changed your life - for the worse, or maybe for the better? Was it an external crisis or opportunity or an internal nudge, a whisper perhaps, that something had to change? We are on Day 21, the final day of the series: From Languishing & Lost → A Good, Gay Life (Series Finale). What actually changes a life? Is it one big decision? A moment of clarity? A perfect plan? In my experience — and in the research — real life change happens through both internal and external circumstances...and projects. Imperfect ones. Awkward ones. Brave ones. Projects that begin with a small step… and continue with a commitment to keep going. Today, instead of introducing something new, I want to show you how this process has played out in my own life — through the Good Life Projects that quietly reshaped who I am, how I live, and what I’m here to do. 🧭 In this final episode, I reflect on: A series of year-long (and sometimes life-long) projects that became turning points: 🚴 Biking Across the Country Learning resilience, solitude, and trust in my body and mind. 🌑 A Shadowed Life A year of turning inward — no TV, no haircuts, deep writing — wrestling with faith, identity, and the courage to come out. ⏳ The Year I Lived (12 Months to Live) Facing mortality to clarify what actually matters — relationships, presence, and meaning. 🧭 Project 46 A yearlong experiment with three intentions: Love in Life • Peace with God • Work I Liked — which ended up shaping an entire decade. 💌 The Gratitude Visit Project Discovering that the deepest fulfillment comes when self-care and service meet. 🔥 Naked Dudes Night Conversations, vulnerability, and chosen family — reimagining what male friendship can look like. 🌱 Project 60: Love, Wonder & Creating Worlds My current chapter — building spaces, stories, and communities that cultivate friendship, transcendence, and reason for being. None of these projects were perfect. But each one followed the same pattern: ➡️ A clue ➡️ A commitment ➡️ A structure ➡️ A willingness to keep going That pattern eventually became what I now call the Good Life Positioning System (GLPS) and the COMPASS framework. 🧠 The deeper lesson of Day 21: A good life isn’t discovered. It’s designed — one project at a time. And that’s exactly what you’ve been doing over the past 21 days with my GLPS COMPASS framework: Clarifying your story Naming what makes you come alive Identifying your strengths and allies Grounding yourself in values and sacred anchors Envisioning a remarkable future Crafting a Good Life Statement Refining your prototype Today is about marking the transition: From reflection → commitment From insight → identity From a 21-day experiment → a yearlong Good Life Project 🔥 Your invitation: Complete your COMPASS journey and commit to a yearlong Good Life Project. It requires movement. 🤝 Want to keep walking this road with others? If you want accountability, support, and community — especially as a queer man doing this work — you’re invited to join the Good Life Lab Gay Men’s Group Coaching Waitlist. 👉 Join here: https://www.drdavesgoodlifelab.com/gr... 🔖 Hashtags #GoodLifeProject #LifeDesign #QueerMen #GayMensMentalHealth #PersonalGrowth #PositivePsychology #PurposeDrivenLife #SelfCareAndService #ChosenFamily #TheGoodLifeLab