Overall, make sure the surface is ready to polish, a day or two in the dehydrator should get most paints fume-free.

Some catalyzed paints will need to be cut relatively soon, as they harden and cross link, they get a lot harder to work, consult the label. I've had great experience with Tamiya TS13 clear, and the Duplicolor 1K if that helps. Also, be very careful with metallics, flakes and pearls, they should be clear coated before any cut and buff.

It's a good idea if the body you are polishing has a lot of surface detail or creases (like a C2 Vette, etc) to run some light drafting tape over the peaks. Even though the grits are mild, it's easy to burn thru the paint.

A few drops of regular Dawn (others have silicones) in the water will help to lubricate the pads and wash away the sanding grit, makes the job go easier and faster.

Pick a hidden area to see how much grit you really need to level the paint - working backward from the finest. The grit that gets the texture flat and no coarser grits than needed is the goal, this avoids deeper scratches.

Over time, the pads will lose their 'tooth' but you can save them, just be aware that they won't cut the same on the 10th job as the first.

Finally - be sure you really need to do the cutting and buffing in the first place. A good single stage solid color job with a nit-free finish can be show worthy with simple compounding and polishing alone (again, Tamiya)