I'm re-reading Exploring the World of Lucid Dreaming by Stephen LaBerge and thought I'd share this part.

This is from pages 48-49.


GOAL SETTING FOR SUCCESS

Lucid dreaming is a kind of mental performance, and you can enlist the aid of psychological techniques developed for enhancing performance to improve your lucid dreaming skills. Sports psychologists have conducted a considerable amount of research on improving performance. One of the most powerful tools to emerge from their work is the theory and practice of goal setting.

Goal setting works. Researchers who reviewed more than 100 studies concluded that "the beneficial effect of goal setting on task performance is one of the most robust and replicable findings in the psychological literature. Furthermore, the research has revealed many details about the right way to go about setting goals.

Here, adapted from one researcher's findings on goal setting are some tips about the right way to approach learning the skill of lucid dreaming.

EXERCISE: GOAL SETTING FOR SUCCESS

1. Set explicit, specific, and numerical goals
Goals are personal, and are related to both your potential and your demonstrated abilities. Depending on your level of achievement, you might want to remember one dream every night or two dreams every night, or to have at least one lucid dream within the next week or month. When I started my dissertation research, I set myself a goal to increase the number of lucid dreams I had each month. This made it easy for. me to evaluate my performance in terms of specific goals.

2. Set difficult but realistic goals
For many people, to have a lucid dream is a difficult but realistic goal. For more advanced oneironauts, a more appropriate goal might be to learn how to fly or to face scary characters. Your performance will increase in proportion to the ambition of your goals, as long as you keep them within the range of your ability.

3. Set short-range as well as long-range goals
Set short-term goals, like remembering a certain number of dreams or performing a certain number of state tests per day (see chapter 3). Also, plan longer-range goals, such as having at least one lucid dream per month. Set dates by which you would like to achieve a certain level of proficiency, for example, "I want to have four lucid dreams by June 1."

4. Record and evaluate your progress
When you reach a goal you have set, such as having twelve lucid dreams in one month, record this achievement. When you reach a goal, set a new one. Or, if you are getting frustrated because you are far from attaining your goals, set yourself less demanding and more realistic aims. Keep notes and statistics in your dream journal. A chart may provide a more visible record of your progress.
Do any of you have goals like this? I'm talking about goals with a time limit (such as 'I'll have _ lucid dreams before next year') not, just 'Summon a person'.

Does it work for you? It seems to be working really well for me (so far). =)

What kind of goals do you set? I've kind of started off easy with 'Recall at least 14 dreams a week.' until I see where I'm at. I also want to have at least two lucid dreams before my birthday. <- That's my long-term goal.