The Gist
GitHub Repo
Stats when open-sourcing: 461 files, 21,905 lines of code, 171 tests
License when open-sourcing: MIT
Development Timeline: July 2021 - Present
Origin Story
Having more autonomy after quitting my FT job in 2021, I started relying on Google Calendar to help me decide how to spend my time. GCal had everything I needed to plan the specifics, but it didn't help me prioritize. I found myself filling my calendar with low-priority tasks while neglecting the hard stuff. I also had no way to integrate my schedule with my long-term goals or priorities. I was scattered and unaligned with my purpose.
I needed an app that combined the "What" with my "Why"; one where I could plan my week but also ensure that my schedule reflected my values.
I decided to make Compass into that app and document my progress on YouTube.
The Journey: Part I
After 3 months of prototyping and talking to users, I made a huge mistake:
I focused on making a calendar.
I spent so much time building the features we all expect from a calendar that I didn't innovate much. By the time the calendar was good enough to add more interesting features, my morale and runway were too low to continue.
Despite never reaching product-market-fit during this initial period, I did build some of the most difficult aspects of a modern productivity app, including:
- Google OAuth
- User session management
- 2-way sync with Google Calendar
- Local timezones
- Recurring events
- Tagging events
- Resizing events
- Drag & drop tasks & events
- Task reordering
- Shortcuts
- Handling all-day events (trust me, tougher than it sounds)
Why I Open-Sourced It
The honest answer:
I couldn't sell it at a price that I felt good about.
The other honest answer:
Too many developers are spending too much time recreating the same features. This increases the time it takes for teams to get feedback from their users, which decreases the likelihood of success, which means users don't get the valuable apps they could've.
The Journey: Part II
I went broke, got a job as a frontend engineer at a big company, and saved money for two years. In fall 2025, I quit and focused all my energy on Compass again.
I enjoyed having the code open-source, and it helped get the word out. So, I kept it that way.
Want to help us make people more productive? We're always accepting contributors. Check out the repo to see how you can get involved.
Thinking about open-sourcing your own project? Check out our open-source launch checklist, which I followed with Compass.