Have you ever built a strong case for something, only to realize later you were solving the wrong problem?
In the latest episode of the No Compromises podcast, we discuss Aaron's surprising reversal on down migrations, a topic we've publicly discussed on this podcast.
We walk through the original arguments for writing down migrations and deconstruct each one.
Ever catch yourself second-guessing decisions you were confident about just months ago? Does that mean you're getting worse at your job?
In the latest episode of the No Compromises podcast, we explore why senior developers often feel "wrong" more frequently than they did earlier in their careers.
Aaron makes the case that this isn't a sign of declining skill—it's evidence of a richer mental model that reveals nuance where things once seemed black and white.
We discuss how feedback sources shift with experience, why changing your mind signals growth rather than failure, and how to reframe architectural decisions as a spectrum rather than binary choices.
Ever feel like you're wasting your time tweaking a section of code to get it just right? We have tools for that, don't we?
In the latest episode of the No Compromises podcast, we discuss when to trust auto-formatters and when to nudge code by hand.
Aaron makes the case that a few mindful minutes of “prettying up” can unblock harder thinking, without surrendering judgment to tools.
We set limits on this approach, share a tiered break strategy, and make it clear why you still own what the formatter changes.
It's easy to overcomplicate data modeling, especially when enums, relationships, and future requirements are in play.
In the latest episode of the No Compromises podcast, Joel brings Aaron a real-world technical dilemma: how to model a relationship between two models when types are stored as enums, not models.
We discuss the pros and cons of pivot tables versus JSON columns, the importance of context before jumping to solutions, and how developer instincts can sometimes get in the way of clarity.
It's easy to get so laser-focused on programming and tech, that you close yourself off to other avenues of learning.
In the latest episode of the No Compromises podcast, Aaron argues that non-tech reading can sharpen your engineering thinking.
We discuss balancing breadth without diluting focus, and how to turn casual reading into active learning with quick capture habits.
We join a fair number of projects, and we often help teams bring their project up to our standard. This means bringing a lot of the same small pieces from project to project.
Multiple times we have encountered the messy reality of rebuilding a decade-old system: stale specs, missing specs, and stakeholders who want "the same… but better."
In the latest episode of the No Compromises podcast, we share a lightweight framework for agreeing on an MVP, tagging "post-MVP" ideas, and negotiating trade-offs while still making progress.
We walk through practical tactics for parallelizing work and learning as you go.
We join a fair number of projects, and we often help teams bring their project up to our standard. This means bringing a lot of the same small pieces from project to project.
In the latest episode of the No Compromises podcast, we rethink our “project standard” repo. Instead of a full Laravel skeleton, we propose a composable library of tool-specific, versioned configs (PHPUnit, Docker, etc.).
We walk through the benefits for greenfield and legacy work, open questions about test organization, and how this approach scales as tools evolve.
DTOs (Data Transfer Objects) aren't mentioned anywhere in the Laravel docs, but some devs use them heavily in their applications, whereas other devs never use them at all.
In the latest episode of the No Compromises podcast, we weigh the pros and cons of DTOs in everyday Laravel apps, comparing them to form requests, PHPDoc-typed arrays, and service-layer boundaries, and share one area where DTOs truly shine.
The takeaway: keep DTOs in the toolbox, but reach for them intentionally, not by habit.
Business change and projects end, but how do you wrap up and sunset an app, especially one you've worked on for years?
In the latest episode of the No Compromises podcast, we share a practical checklist for winding down an app when the whole company is closing. From documenting services and dependencies to deciding what data to retain, we cover backups, credentials, and why deleting local copies matters for security and sanity.
What do you do when you need to create some data but you haven't built out the UI for that data yet? A seeder is a great approach, but is it always the right one?
In the latest episode of the No Compromises podcast, we dive into a real project where starting with the most complex feature made test data management painful. Instead of exploding the complexity of our seeders, we built a minimal UI to manage test data.
We also talk about some other unexpected benefits, and talk through the trade-offs and why detours like this should feel uncomfortable (and be tightly scoped).
Blade gives you two big levers for keeping views maintainable: @include and Blade components.
When should you use one versus the other?
Does it matter?
In the latest episode of the No Compromises podcast, we lay out a clear heuristic for when to extract markup for organization (includes) versus when to encapsulate and reuse with controlled scope (components).
We also touch on scope pitfalls, “passing for documentation,” and why performance worries usually lie elsewhere.
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Aaron admits he used to wrap every query in plain old if-statements—until Laravel’s when()/unless() helpers (and arrow functions) won him over. He and Joel compare their journeys, debate readability trade-offs, and share guidelines for deciding which style to use. Along the way they discuss false assumptions, evolving “code grammar,” and how tools such as Rector can automate the switch.
Joel and Aaron compare two very different ways to tackle pull-requests—reviewing them commit-by-commit or scanning the whole thing at once. They dig into when each approach shines, how “atomic” commits can help (or hurt) reviewers, and why understanding how your teammate’s brain works is a super-power. Along the way they share practical tips for leaving yourself notes, spotting hidden changes, and keeping large refactors under control.
Joel and Aaron explain why every project should start in the client’s own GitHub organization—even when the client has never heard of Git. They share scripts, onboarding tips, and war-stories that show how small setup shortcuts turn into big headaches later. You’ll learn a repeatable way to protect both your reputation and your client’s code base.
Joel and Aaron unpack how they use code-coverage numbers as a starting signal rather than a finish line. They discuss realistic thresholds, choosing the right tool for each test layer, and why coverage metrics can double as negotiation leverage inside big organizations. Listen in for practical ways to decide what to test—and when to stop.
Joel and Aaron unpack a recent client project where the only spec was “make these two systems talk.” They share how console-level prototypes helped them clarify data mapping, test tricky scenarios, and keep the client looped in without over-building a UI. If you’ve ever had to code first and document later, this one’s for you.
Joel and Aaron dig into Laravel’s `Stringable` class and uncover how it can silently skip Blade’s automatic HTML escaping. They explain why that’s both a convenient feature and a potential security pitfall if user input isn’t properly sanitized. You’ll hear practical ways to keep your views safe without losing the API’s fluency.
Picking up where last week’s “Why ‘no time’ really means ‘no priority’” left off, Joel and Aaron tackle the next hurdle: what to do once the benefits are crystal‑clear but you (or your team) still hesitate. They unpack the hidden frictions—fear of discomfort, stakeholder pushback, or sheer inertia—that keep valuable tasks on the back burner. You’ll hear a quick mental exercise for elevating true priorities and concrete tactics for transforming “someday” into forward motion today.
Joel and Aaron tackle the common objection, “We don’t have time,” and show why it usually hides a priority problem. They discuss how to convey the true payoff of process improvements by sharing honest before‑and‑after stories instead of vague promises. You’ll leave with practical ideas for getting buy‑in—whether you’re pitching tests, planning habits, or any other change.
Joel and Aaron show how ignoring GET request validation can cause performance issues and open your application to abuse. They highlight the importance of bounding pagination and share tips for using form requests to handle unexpected user input.
Now go check out the best/only Laravel validation book