Honestly, this is probably the most important rule out of all the others. Sure, there needs to be some savvy know-how to understand the way it all works, piecing it together in your mind. Nevertheless, a good due diligence will save you countless dollars of loss. When a new currency or ICO arises, or any new investment opportunity for that matter, you need to make sure you follow through and do your research on the topic. No one cares if you lose your hard earned money, so why wouldn't you take that into your own hands and make sure you know every detail about the investment before you make the decision. Check the team, their backgrounds, the transparency of the project, the allocation of their seed investments... all of these things will minimise the risk of loss, and maximise the potential for gains.

Our two-cents.