Children respect rules more when they understand the reasons for them. If you play with matches, you could burn yourself. You want your child to learn why good behavior is good, not just to follow commands. Your child may not understand a rule right away or remember it every time, so you will need to repeat it many times. Keep them few.
Children can only learn a few rules at a time.
All rules are not equal. Not playing in the street is much more important than not leaving clothes on the floor. Make It Easy for Your Child To Be Good . . . Get rid of temptations. If you don't want your child to eat cookies until after dinner, keep them out of reach.