A calmer way to use Git branches

Most branching pain comes from branches that live too long. Keep them short, merge them in days rather than weeks, and pull changes from the main branch often so conflicts stay small.

Give branches descriptive names, commit in small logical steps, and write messages that explain why a change was made, not just what changed. Delete a branch once it is merged; the history remains in the log. Whether your team prefers merge commits or rebasing matters less than agreeing on one approach and sticking to it.