🧠 GitHub Basics Every Developer Should Know (But Many Don’t)

Whether you’re a beginner or already pushing code daily, chances are you’ve used GitHub. But beyond the usual git add . and git push, there are some simple yet powerful practices that many developers miss—ones that can level up your collaboration, project management, and confidence as a coder.

Let’s walk through the essential GitHub skills that every developer should know, with friendly explanations and practical tips. 💡

🏷️ 1. Write Meaningful Commit Messages

Bad: fixed stuff
Better: Fix: correct margin issue in header component

Use a verb prefix (Add:, Fix:, Update:) to summarize your change.

Keep the message short, but descriptive.

Format:

git commit -m "Fix: handle null values in user profile API"

🔧 Pro tip: Use git commit -m "type: short message" for clarity in team projects.

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🌿 2. Create and Use Branches Properly

Avoid pushing everything to main (or master)!

git checkout -b feature/login-page

Why?

• Keeps your main branch clean
• Lets you experiment without fear
• Makes collaboration smoother (everyone works on their own branch)

Merge it later via pull request (PR), after code review.

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📦 3. Squash Your Commits Before Merging

You’ve probably seen PRs with 20 commits like:

• fix typo
• try again
• finally working

Instead, squash them into one clean commit:

git rebase -i HEAD~4

Then choose squash for the messy ones and rewrite your final commit message.

🧼 Result: a tidy Git history.

🛡 4. Use .gitignore to Avoid Committing Unwanted Files

You don’t want to accidentally upload:

• node_modules/
• .env
• dist/

Use a .gitignore file:

• node_modules/
• .env
• *.log

Use gitignore.io to generate templates for your tech stack.

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🔀 5. Understand Pull Requests (PRs)

PRs are not just about merging code—they're conversations. 👇

• Add clear titles and descriptions
• Tag teammates for review
• Leave comments and ask questions

Also, don’t be afraid to suggest improvements on someone else’s PR.

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🧩 6. Forking vs Cloning

Clone: You’re working on your own repo locally.

Fork: You copy someone else’s repo to your GitHub account so you can propose changes (especially for open source).

git clone https://github.com/user/repo.git

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⏳ 7. Revert a Commit (When You Break Something 😅)

Oops! You pushed something buggy. Instead of panicking:

git revert <commit-hash>

This creates a new commit that undoes the previous one—safe and clean.

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✅ 8. Enable GitHub Issues & Projects (Lightweight Task Management)

If you're building a project solo or with a team, track bugs, features, and todos right inside GitHub with:

• Issues
• GitHub Projects

They integrate beautifully with pull requests and commits.

🎉 Final Thoughts

You don’t need to memorize every Git command. But knowing how to write good commits, use branches, clean up your history, and collaborate with PRs will make you a more effective and professional developer.

It’s not just about writing code—it’s about writing traceable, understandable, and collaborative code.

✍️ What GitHub trick blew your mind when you first learned it? Drop it in the comments!

🔁 Want a part 2 with advanced Git tips like stash, cherry-pick, or GitHub Actions? Let me know!

Comments

[Sawyer Wolfe]

A quick tip: You can use git status often to double-check what’s staged, unstaged, or untracked before committing—great for avoiding accidental file commits!

[Preeti yadav]

Absolutely! 🙌
Great tip, especially for beginners who are still getting used to Git's flow. Thanks for sharing! 😊

[Nathan Tarbert]

pretty cool, been cool seeing steady progress - it adds up. you think habits or just showing up every day matters more for getting better at this stuff?

[Preeti yadav]

Thanks! Really appreciate that. 😊
Honestly, I think just showing up consistently builds the habit, and over time, habits make progress feel almost automatic. Even 30 focused minutes a day adds up fast. So yeah, it’s not about being perfect—just being present every day.