git commands for the situations that happen

not a full reference. the commands I actually reach for when something's gone sideways

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git commit --amend

fix the last commit message or slip in a forgotten file, before you push. after you push this gets messy

git reset --soft HEAD~1

git stash && git stash pop

save uncommitted work to switch branches, then bring it back. forgetting the pop is how you lose an afternoon

git rebase -i HEAD~5

squash or reorder the last 5 commits before a pr. scary at first, pick/squash/drop are all you need. git rebase --abort exists for a reason

git cherry-pick <commit>

git reflog

the command that has saved me more than any other. every ref move is logged here, even after a hard reset

git restore .

git branch -D <branch>

git log --oneline --graph --all

see the actual shape of the branch history, not just a list of commits

git bisect start

binary search through commits to find which one broke something. you will look this up again every time, nobody remembers the syntax

git push --force-with-lease

force push but it fails if someone else pushed since your last fetch. use this, never plain --force

git diff --staged

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