Most people just like to take the quick way to gain lucid dreams, which is still useful. But Dream Journals is an effective way also. Do dream journals for a little bit. 4 weeks at the max, one week at the minimum. Then after you have a good understanding of it. Check out the stuff that happens a lot in your dreams. Say you realize cheese always pops up in your dreams. Make a list of main elements of your dreams and every time something related to your dream sign comes up, reality check. This is effective because it nearly all the time will make you reality check during a dream, and it helps with your dream recall.