Although the original commenter referred to junior people, I'm often having to explain these things to those who are not - sometimes to people with more experie

Although the original commenter referred to junior people, I'm often having to explain these things to those who are not - sometimes to people with more experience than I have (e.g. 15-20 years). Besides, there are plenty of online resources as well as books on the purpose of branches, and its benefits. Some of these have been around since before Git existed. I don't have a problem explaining the why, and pointing them to resources. It's the inevitable "OK, but how do I do that with Git?" Extending it a bit: I often work with people who will never read a manual. They'll want to find a quick SO answer, or a short tutorial for everything. But once in a while, you need to read the man page, or the official docs.