Odd experience?

So I've wanted to experience a lucid dream for quiet some time and read a wiki how about ways to improve your chances of becoming lucid in your dreams, and one of the steps said to look at your hands and say "this is not a dream". I've been doing that often enough, but last night I kind of became aware I was dreaming. I was running away from a collapsing building and I suddenly saw my hands and thought "this is not a dream" and I found myself in my living room? I realised that I could control my dream and a great sense of power came over me, I tried to move things without touching them and this worked with small items but nothing large like the sofa, so I tried to materialise things and that didn't work either. I then went out into my kitchen where my brother and his friend were and I tried to show them why I could do but it took ages for me to move anything and when I did it was only a coin, them they left and two of my friends showed up, and then lots of other people and I forgot about the lucid dream? It's hard to explain really, I know I wasn't lucid, but can someone explain what happened? And if you have any tips on how to become lucid easier or more effective than the hand thing, I would appreciate them!

I wouldn't say "this is NOT a dream" in the first place, whenever I wonder, I always question myself if it's a dream, otherwise I could fall into a false conclusion. On the other hand, I see that apparently you've lost your mind once you got it. It's normal to see people in their first experiences rushing into things before doing any other thing, but it's not a good advise to start that way because the dream could absorb you if you don't wake up.
Now that you know that you can do it, I would suggest that perhaps you could learn a little bit more about dream stabilization techniques, reality checks, lucid goals, etc. About how to increase your chances, it depends on the person and what he/she finds best to work with. I would just say that you shouldn't be jumping from one to another technique the same way you started to play with your lucid powers in that dream you described. As I see it, it's not a matter of how many things you can do but the few ones that you can, you are really good at them.

The hand thing you do sounds like a Reality Check. Do you already keep a Dream Journal? If not, you should probably start one to enchance your dream recall. If you do not use a technique yet, you can probably try out MILD (Mnemonic Induction of Lucid Dreams) but I would recommend that only if you have a good memory/recall already if not, try first to recall more dreams. MILD itself is fairly simple, you just have to follow 5 simple steps:

-Set up a dream recall:

Before going to bed resolve to wake up and recall dreams during each REM period throughout the night, or after 6 A.M or whenever you like.

-Recall your dream:

When you awaken after a REM period, try to recall and write down your dream in your journal.

-Focus your intent:

When youre returning to sleep after waking up, try to concentrate on your intent to become lucid, for example through a Mantra saying "Next time I'm dreaming, I want to remember I'm dreaming." And at the same time try to imagine yourself back in the dreamscene from which you woke up but this time see yourself becoming lucid, through a reality check or dreamsign etc.

Repeat Focusing your intent until you really believe it will work and then let yourself fall asleep. So you will probably remember in your next dream that youre dreaming because of those exercises.

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Thats at least the basic idea of MILD and my favorite technique for lucid dreaming, and most important don't be disappointed by failures.

What I also do to help myself getting lucid dreams is that I get up after 6 hour sleep, stay up for one hour and then go back to bed with the intention to get lucid. WBTB (Wake back to bed). So far it never have failed me.

Hope this helps.

Thanks for your suggestions! If I shouldn't be doing the hand thing is there other ways to do a reality check? I have started keeping a dream journal but only recently, I have about four dreams in it, I know I've had more but I just can't remember them. I will definitely try the MILD and WBTB techniques!
Thanks!

Being lucid means knowing that one is dreaming, and as with anything in dream, it can be lost if you pay not enough attention to it, so that's what happened. :zzz:
For reality check i would personally suggest looking at hands and expecting them to change or have additional/not enough fingers, you were doing it somewhat right, but instead of thinking "this is not a dream", which is completely wrong thing to do, think "Wow, am i dreaming?" and put emotions into it. :peek:
There are also other reality checks, i found a list of common ones there: Reality Checks - Lucid Dreaming - Dream Views :)
Also stabilization techniques are known to prolong the lucidity and dreams, you can check this tutorial for more information about them: Dream Stabilization and Clarity Tutorial - Lucid Dreaming - Dream Views :poof:

You had lucidity, but like the others said, you quickly lost it because of lack of proper training. It will come with time, just focus on your environment a lot while in the dream and keep reassuring yourself of it's fallacy.

As checker666 suggested, looking at hands is a very good RC. And, it has already worked for you. I would defnitelly continue with that. Here is how you put emotions into asking "wow, is this a dream" (daytime awareness) and some more RC suggestions.

Thanks everyone :)