"My key assertion is that a good portfolio with a low dividend yield is very much better to have than a worse portfolio selected for a high dividend yield. So start with the best picks you can manage. If you can put together a decent port with a high dividend yield, that's great, but beware the "reach" risk--on average you get much lower total returns as the payout gets high. The best way to build a dividend portfolio is usually to pick a bunch of plausibly good stocks which happen to have not-too-high yields."

I think a Buffett 'Lens' works great for this. Although he is by his own account not a 'dividend investor', much of his approach is great for those who are seeking regular income from their investments without too much trading.