Another thing I'd recommend is not to do it "on and off". Lucid Dreaming, for those of us unfortunate enough not to be blessed with the natural ability, takes effort and dedication. It can be quite hard work sometimes, but you have to realise that it's all worth it if you want to achieve your goals.

I would say that "realising you're dreaming" may be harmful to your efforts. For example, once you "realise", you simply go on with your day. In a dream, what's to stop you from just continuing with the dream plot and losing any lucidity you may have had? Just be careful with this one.