I'm self-taught so feel free not to listen to me. I've had best luck when I start at the bar end, starting on the underside from outside to inside. I used to be afraid to pull too hard on the tape for fear it would break. Now I pull hard. The harder I pull, the tighter the wrap and the less likely it is to come loose. I've never broken it yet. I use electrical tape to hold down the ends a couple inches away from the stem. The narrow little strips of black tape that come with the bar tape aren't enough.