Quote Originally Posted by Ctharlhie View Post
Because to remember to do is to already be lucid.

Perhaps critical reflection is useful in the beginning, then the mere moment of questioning is enough.

The reason why we engage in these exercises in the waking state is to raise our critical state awareness, not to ask them in dream. But you knew that already.

When I become lucid the moment of wondering is often enough, and then it's obvious. Sometimes even the moment of wonder is not needed.

It's also my belief that these 'I just know' lucids are of a higher lucidity at the outset, and that the lucids attained via in-dream reasoning require additional work on cognition levels.

Of course you are right about individual differences. I seem to have better memory than most, and don't find it difficult to remember goals once lucid (at least in the 'dream feeling' DILDs).
I find my goal memory is also quite good, in those lucids where I have any memory of the waking state at all. That is, dreams beyond simply "I'm dreaming so that means I can fly, yipee!" I did the Sageous "remember your sleeping body" in a LD very shortly after reading that thread, without much waking preparation of it.

I call these lucids "TOTM-worthy" -- where I understand I'm in a mental fantasy environment, and that I have goals. In these LDs my memory is quite good.

Yes, in the dreams even the beginning of the question usually results for me in instant lucidity, I do not just stand there going "Who am I with? Where am I?" In fact I think not once have I ever done that.

But my thing is....what's happened? Why have I "back-slid?" This is why I concentrate on the state tests so much when awake: I think I need to simply to reclaim my earlier frequency. There's no doubt, my dreaming's great and at an all-time high vividness and presence-wise....but I'm just not remembering to explicitly notice the dream state with full awareness.