I used to believe this. Having solid lower environments which are identical to production, receiving live traffic where engineers can stage changes and promote

I used to believe this. Having solid lower environments which are identical to production, receiving live traffic where engineers can stage changes and promote up removes some of the “all things should live on a branch” business. I know that sounds crazy, but it is possible for teams of the right size to go crazy on master as long as the safety nets and exposure to reality are high enough in lower environments.