• 50 years later, this popular book's advice for living a meaningful life is more relevant than ever

In 1975, Zen Buddhist monk Thich Nhat Hanh published "The Miracle of Mindfulness," and its themes, like the importance of living in the present, are still relevant today.

While the popular book offers helpful tips for beginners who want to practice meditation consistently, Nhat Hanh's advice extends to the other ways people can live a more mindful life.

Mindfulness, as defined by Nhat Hanh, is "keeping one's consciousness alive to the present reality." Engaging in mindfulness requires active meditation through viewing everything as a wonder — from looking up at the clouds to simply breathing in and out.

By staying in the present instead of looking forward to the next exciting thing, you are actively living, instead of passively living, Nhat Hanh explained. If you mindlessly perform tasks like washing the dishes and riding public transportation, you "are not alive during the time," he wrote. And our time is limited.

An inability to be present, even for the tedious tasks, means you are overly focused on the future. This can affect your ability to fully experience the moments you actually enjoy, Nhat Hanh explained. Think about the sadness people often experience on the last day of a vacation.

'Often we forget it is the people around us that we must live for first'

You can lose your sense of agency when you view things like cooking for your kids or going to work as everyone else's time but your own, because it will cause you to feel like you have very limited time for yourself, Nhat Hanh said. Instead, he encourages you to immerse yourself in those experiences.

Even with a busy work schedule, you can still practice mindfulness if you focus on the task at hand, he said. "Keep your attention focused on the work, be alert and ready to handle ably and intelligently any situation which may arise – this is mindfulness."

To depict mindfulness during family time, Nhat Hanh used the example of a man named Allen helping his son, Joey, with his homework.

"When I help Joey with his homework, I try to find ways of seeing his time as my own time. I go through his lesson with him, sharing his presence and finding ways to be interested in what we do during that time. The time for him becomes my own time," Allen said.

"The remarkable thing is that now I have unlimited time for myself!"

Nhat Hanh ends his book with a reminder that the time you spend doing things for others, especially your friends, family and local community, aren't barriers between you and an enjoyable life. Those moments are what actually make life meaningful.

Focusing on the present moment and making the most important pursuit in your life "making the person standing at your side happy," whether it's your child, the mailman or your co-worker is a simple, but effective way to make your life, and the lives of those around you, more enjoyable, he explained.

"We talk about social service, service to the people, service to humanity, service for others who are far away, helping to bring peace to the world—but often we forget that it is the very people around us that we must live for first of all," Nhat Hanh wrote.

"The word service is so immense. Let's return first to a more modest scale: our families, our classmates, our friends, our own community. We must live for them—for if we cannot live for them, whom else do we think we are living for?"

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