In the game of backyard cricket, the kid who owns the bat gets to bat first.
As a child you know it’s not a real cricketing rule. It’s an “I own a bat, so I get preference” rule.
As we grow older, we encounter a number of social practices we consider as ‘rules.’
Dressing up a certain way. Behaving (or not behaving) a specific way in a social setting. Choosing some educational institutes because they are premium. Making typical career choices because that’s the norm. Following selected religious practices and so on.
The only difference (compared to childhood) being, we accept them as “real rules.” We don’t question them at all.
Rules are a means to execute authority. They involve a controlling party who makes up the rules for the other party to follow. To behave a certain way, often for the benefit of the controlling party.
The only rules that apply to your life are the ones you decide or agree to. When encountering different rules in life, it always helps to ask the question, “who made these rules?”