Awareness is important for dream recall too!

I notice there is a lot of talk about techniques to improve recall, like keeping a dream journal, thinking about the dream you just had when you wake up, thinking "what was I just dreaming about" etc...

But I believe that for a lot of people struggling with recall or those that are doing all the techniques but don't notice a huge increase it's important to note that no matter how good your memory is, you can't remember something you didn't notice happened.

It's another important reason to cultivate mindfulness / awareness during the day, to avoid those "blackouts" when you suddenly "wake up" and realise you've just been day dreaming or lost in thought for the last 20 minutes. During that time even if a UFO lands in front of you, you won't remember it later simply because you missed it.

If you're not aware during the dream, the dream itself becomes a lost moment, you wake up and wonder what was my last dream? Did I dream? I don't know, I wasn't there.

So if your day time is full of holes, your dream time will be too.