Lucid dreaming and working is definitely doable, but as you said, one needs to put at least some effort. I liked snoop's perspective on working towards higher awareness.

I think we might be also falling in a bit of a misperception regarding efforts and awards here though. Anything you actually do to improve your dreams or your awareness in general is having an immediate effect on you, even if it isn't that obvious. We are living in ever busy and distracted lives, so anything that helps train your memory (like journalling or mindfulness) will bring benefits to other areas of your life. Paying more attention to one's inner or outer environment works to sharpen the very tools you use every second of your being - your mind and awareness.

So, I definely recommend to look at dreaming as a life-enhancing discipline. To work your way up lucidity, one naturally needs to start small and build a strong foundation from there. Even if you can't keep a lenghtly dream journal, for example, try getting into the habit of jotting down at least a sentense a day, answering the questions who, what, where was your dream about.