Richard Wiseman: I’m a psychologist, magician and writer. My book Shoot For The Moon (Quercus, £20) is about the mindset that got humanity to the Moon

1. CONDUCT A PRE-MORTEM

Apollo Mission Control was ready for any eventuality because they had thought through all possible problems and prepared for them. If you conduct a ‘pre-mortem’ before embarking on any venture, you can spot potential problems that might emerge, and try to find solutions. It’s a wonderful way of boosting your decision making

2. THE POWER OF PASSION

I interviewed the Apollo Mission Controllers and they were astonishingly passionate. Passion matters, but people struggle to find it. If you’re on a desert island and only allowed books on one topic, what do you choose? What did you love doing as a child? What are you doing when time whizzes by? These questions will help identify the love of your life

3. KEEP A FAILURE DIARY

We all like to bury our mistakes, but the Apollo teams were open to learning from failure. Best-selling self-help author Dale Carnegie kept a personal diary where he noted mistakes he’d made and what he had learned from them. Every day, jot down each of your errors, what you discovered from making them and how you’ll try to prevent it happening again

4. TAKE SMALL STEPS

The Apollo team achieved its big goal by taking small steps. First they sent an astronaut around the Earth, then added an extra astronaut and so on until they got to the Moon. Harness the power of small wins by breaking your big goal into smaller stages and celebrate after you achieve each step. Use the big goal to motivate, but focus on the small step in front

5. THE OUTCOME

It’s easy to think you might never achieve a really significant goal. However, if you do start to doubt yourself, just go outside on a clear night and look up at the Moon. Always remember that sending a person up there seemed impossible, but against all the odds, they got there. And you can, too

THE ROAD TO INNOVATION

The Apollo Mission involved vast amounts of creativity. Here’s how to help get your creative juices flowing

1. Avoid the temptation to adopt the first plan that occurs to you. Force yourself to come up with other ideas

2. Look at what your rivals are doing, and consider doing the opposite. If they go big, go small 

3. Remember less is more. People are more creative when they are faced with limitations