Every developer has been there — staring at the same error for 3 hours, only to find it was a typo. Here are the 5 most common debugging mistakes and how to stop making them:

1. Not reading the full error message

Most devs scan the first line and panic. The stack trace is your best friend — it tells you exactly where the problem started, not just where it crashed.

2. Changing multiple things at once

You tweak 4 files, hit refresh, and now you have 3 new bugs. Change ONE thing, test, repeat. Debugging is a science experiment.

3. Ignoring console.log / print statements

"I'll just use the debugger." Sure — but sometimes a quick console.log(typeof myVariable) saves 20 minutes of stepping through code.

4. Not checking your assumptions

You THINK the API returns an array. But did you console.log the actual response? Half of debugging is proving your assumptions wrong.

5. Going solo for too long

Rubber duck debugging works, but after 30 minutes of being stuck, ask someone. A fresh pair of eyes catches what you've been blind to.

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