Welcome to A Day Well Spent, a newsletter about purposeful living.
By BBC presenter, journalist and writer, Leyla Kazim
Join thousands of readers from around the world for inspiration to cultivate a life of intention and empowerment, every week.
📕📕Pathways is my debut book, a two-part limited edition special with independent publisher The Pound Project.
Part memoir, part manifesto, part guide, this book chronicles my decision to leave the only life I’ve known to answer a calling to live off the land in rural Portugal.
It’s an honest look at the absurdities of modern life and how we can cut through the noise to pursue a more fulfilling existence.
More info at ‘I’ve written my debut book. In secret’.
(NOTE: Pathways is currently SOLD OUT but it will have one final sale 23 - 30 November 2025 in time for Christmas.
Subscribe to this newsletter to ensure you don’t miss the announcement.)
Who is A Day Well Spent for?
This is a newsletter for people seeking pathways to more purposeful living.
The common threads are: self-empowerment, personal fulfilment and growth and ways of slow and sustainable living.
I have 4 main goals with it:
to help us learn new things, discuss interesting topics and do cool stuff
to help us discover, awaken and nourish ourselves and each other
to give you regular doses of connection and accountability
to get to know you, the person reading this
If you crave these things too, this newsletter could be the place for you. It would be my pleasure to welcome you.
Some useful information
What I publish: opinion pieces, practical how to guides, curated lists, interviews, travel guides, giveaways, invites to online and in real life events and more.Â
What do you get? around 4 posts from me each month comprising of weekly essays. After every 8 weeks I take a one week break to give both of us space to breathe.
Where to start: perhaps with my first ever post or take a look at who is already here (check out the comments section) and introduce yourself to the community in that post too. Then perhaps have a peruse of the full archive.
What you're invited to do: join this community as a valued member
Why join the membership?
Mainly because I reserve my best writing — the things readers find of most value — for paid supporters. It’s my most honest and private work. It’s all the good stuff.
Here’s a taster of some of my most popular posts:
How to not catch a cold
Why I’m so selective with who I spend time with
You’re not getting old, you just need to stretch
Hobbies: how to find out what you’re into
Dislike gyms? Me too. What I use to strength train at home
This is how - and what - I eat
How to create more ‘being’ time
How I grew from zero to ‘bestseller’ in 5 weeks
There’s also the community
The best part of this newsletter is IMO, the community.
Joining the membership also grants you access to participate in (or just read, that’s OK too) the extensive discussions under each post and connect with the hundreds of smart, welcoming and ever flourishing A Day Well Spent members.
Joining the membership today would immediately unlock access to:
The full archive of 200+ paywalled posts (including all the comment sections) plus you’ll start receiving 4 brand new columns from me each month.
This for for the price of just two coffees a month, or 34% less than that with the annual subscription.
Or even less than that with this little code, if you choose to join today:
You’ll also be supporting all the hours of research, editing, writing, reading, designing, production, admin and so much more that goes into producing the content here. You will be enabling me to keep this newsletter going. And that would mean the world to me.
What members say
Becoming a member is a decision I’m certain you wouldn’t regret. But don’t take my word for it. Here are just some of the reasons why my treasured supporters chose to join:
Allow me to introduce myself
Hello, I’m Leyla Kazim. I’m half Turkish Cypriot and half Mauritian. I’m a TV and radio presenter, writer, speaker and journalist.
I’m a Londoner, born and bred and lived there my entire life. Until the summer of 2025, when my husband and I decided to say goodbye to the only urban lives we’ve ever known, to pursue a land-based way of living in rural Portugal.
(this is what my book Pathways is about!)
I love:
To create and make things. Foraging, fermenting, going to dinner, spending time with family, growing fruit and veg, solo travel, my autonomy, doing stuff with my hands, the Sun, silence, dancing like a loon, herbalism, calisthenics, hiking, not having a boss, making wine, spirituality, permaculture, live music, learning new skills and moving my body in new ways.
I categorically cannot multi-task, I have a degree in Astrophysics, I can’t seem to go to bed before 1am, I’ve climbed Mount Kilimanjaro and my dream is to have a big and bountiful lemon tree in my garden.Â
One of the most precious things in the world to me is my free time, nature astounds me on a daily basis and I am at my happiest when outside covered in mud from a day’s garden graft.
Interviews
I have answered interviews for some lovely writers on Substack, where I go into topics a little deeper:
How do you create everyday joy? — a conversation with Emma Gannon
Guided by Nature with Leyla Kazim — about the body, brain and books
Digging Around with Leyla Kazim — about gardening
Leyla Kazim is Choosing a Slower Life — about living more intentionally and joyfully
A bit more about me
My regular work is as a TV and radio food and travel presenter and writer — I love my job.
I’m a critic on MasterChef and MasterChef: The Professionals and I’m a presenter on BBC Radio 4’s award-winning weekly show The Food Programme (running for over 40 years). I’m also a judge for the prestigious annual BBC Food & Farming Awards.
And you can find me in other TV bits.
I also create digital content about travel, food and permaculture for my social media accounts, Instagram and YouTube (if you’re on those feel free to connect there too!)
Thanks again for being here and for getting all the way down this About page. Here’s the 10% off code again in case you missed it:
