Read a SELECT in logical order
Explain the logical order of a SELECT query before editing one.
Think of SELECT as a conveyor belt: FROM builds the working table, WHERE removes raw rows, GROUP BY forms groups, HAVING removes groups, SELECT names the final output, ORDER BY presents it, and LIMIT trims it. This model is intentionally logical, not a promise about the optimizer. Use it when debugging because most beginner SQL errors are time-travel errors: using a value before it exists, filtering a group before it is a group, or trusting output order before ORDER BY. The professional habit is to narrate the row shape at each stage before editing a query under pressure.
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