What are some important rules to follow during the process of dreadlocking?

1st rule
ignore everything sites say that try to sell you products
2nd rule
do not ever use dread wax
3rd rule
wash your dreads (weekly is best but do what feels right to you, use only a non residue soap, or baking soda deep clean
4th rule
do not leave in rubber bands more then a day or 2
5th rule
do as little damage as you can, the more you do to your dreads the more damage you do and the higher the maintenance required, natural dreads are very low maintenance
5th rule
if you dont want congos (combining dreads growing together) separate them often
6th rule
for info seek out online forums not "dreadlock companies" these companies sell lies in order to sell products, forums however only care about dreads not profits.
7th rule
and perhaps the most important
dreads happen on theyre own, going to a professional dreadlock loctician in most cases will end up costing you a ton of money for a total mess. locticians are often scams, or just completely misinformed. even state liscenced locticians can do you great harm.