The 8 Principles of Living Well
What I learnt about good living after working with over 450 people
The number is not an exaggeration (I worked a lot). Over the past few years, I have had long conversations with many people from over 25 countries, across 6 continents. Anywhere between 18 to 72, they had a variety of professions, from horse riding jockey to security guard, academy award nominee to multi millionaire CEO.
Here is an honest account of what I have learnt about what 'living well' truly means; what it is, and what it is not.
Happiness is often confused for fulfillment, but they are different things.
The first is an emotion. The second is a positive outlook of the many actions we take across our lives.
Happiness occurs in good moments; sharing a meal with someone you love, hearing unexpected good news, watching the sunset after a difficult day. It comes and goes, as every other emotion does.
Fulfillment is more enduring. It is the feeling that your life belongs to you. It is being able to say, ‘I lived life as myself, pursued the goals that were in line with who I am and my values, and contributed something of substance to the world’.
No good thing matters if one is not present for it.
Presence is often mistaken for gratitude, mindfulness or romanticizing life. It shares something with each of those ideas, but it is not quite the same.
What it really means is noticing and being absorbed in what is already in front of you. It is a muscle that needs exercising and maintenance, because without it, it’s unlikely you will enjoy yourself even if you had everything you ever wanted.
Listening when someone is speaking. Tasting your food rather than eating absent-mindedly. Feeling the warmth of the sun instead of thinking about tomorrow's meeting. It is allowing your attention to rest where your life actually is.
Like any other muscle, presence weakens when it isn't used. Our minds are remarkably good at living in memories, worries and imagined futures. Yet no amount of success, wealth or achievement can be enjoyed if we are never truly there to experience it when it does come around.
In many ways, living well is less about trying to accumulate more beautiful moments, and more about learning not to miss the ones that are already happening.
A lack of purpose is at the core of most people's problems. Create one.
Think back to a time when you truly committed yourself to something. There was a clear goal, and while starting slow, you built on what you had, and that compounded over time. More than anything, it made you come alive and feel good about life, no matter what other issues were going on in the background.
Purpose, or trying for something you care about, does not remove struggle, grief or disappointment, but acts like an anchor and paves the way for good things to come.
One's purpose does not have to change the world. It simply needs to matter to you. Trying wholeheartedly for something, even if you're not particularly good at it yet, has a remarkable way of changing who you become.
Learn about who you are.
And make sure you like and are proud of that person.
Many people move through life unconsciously choosing careers, relationships and routines that don't quite fit, without ever asking themselves why. Their preferences are shaped by habit, expectation or fear rather than genuine self-awareness. The people who were happy over time despite setbacks paid attention to themselves, what they valued, wanted and needed, and took action based on those things.
Living well requires participation. It asks you to become an active author of your life rather than a passive observer of it.
You cannot avoid struggle, suffering, and adversity.
But you can interpret it and let it show you the way.
Even some of the most successful people, no matter how you define success, go through hardships. No amount of money, connections, time, love, anything really, can help you avoid it. Life by design is imperfect, and we all need to learn to work with that.
What I found again and again was that people who were deeply fulfilled didn't just endure hardship; they found a way to weave as much of it into the story of their lives.
That doesn't mean you can interpret every hardship as part of your story, or that there is one correct response to pain.
Someone who survives a life-changing illness doesn't have to become a doctor, start a medical charity, build a health-tech company or dedicate their life to advocacy. Those paths may be deeply meaningful for one person, but completely wrong for another.
The meaning you make from suffering is deeply personal, and the "right" response is the one that genuinely fits your character and life, not the one that looks most noble from the outside.
You cannot override your own biology.
We often speak as though the mind and body are separate, but they are in constant conversation.
It quickly becomes difficult to enjoy life if our body is exhausted. Caring for your body isn't about pursuing perfection or chasing an ideal image of health. It is an acknowledgement that your body is where every experience of your life takes place.
Health habits like sleep or good food are not particularly exciting, and they certainly don't promise instant transformation. Yet, they quietly influence almost everything else.
When these foundations are steady, life becomes easier to navigate, not because problems disappear, but because you simply become better equipped to meet them.
Much of life is a balancing act.
Many of us are taught to think in extremes. Work harder or rest more. Be ambitious or be content. Save everything or spend freely. Stay independent or ask for help.
Yet very little about living well exists at either end of the spectrum.
The people who seemed most fulfilled understood that a good life makes room for both. They ate nourishing meals most of the time, but didn't feel guilty for enjoying birthday cake or maggi on a rainy day. They worked hard, but knew that rest wasn't a reward to be earned. They planned for the future while still making space for joy in the present.
Balance isn't about splitting everything fifty-fifty. It is about knowing what serves you over the long term, while allowing yourself the flexibility to fully experience life along the way.
Ultimately, even though every person had different circumstances, values and goals, they did specific things that all had the same flavour: they knew who they were, pursued what mattered to them, cared for themselves, made peace with life's imperfections, and remained present enough to enjoy it along the way. True fulfilment appears to be not a destination, but a way of life.
© 2026 Khaḷe All Rights Reserved
Khaḷe does not offer in-patient or out-patient medical, diagnostic, emergency or psychiatric service at present and is not a replacement for the same.
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