diff --git a/.dockerignore b/.dockerignore
index 1b7f1ef..dc78b75 100644
--- a/.dockerignore
+++ b/.dockerignore
@@ -1,10 +1,25 @@
+# Git
 .git
 .gitignore
+
+# Documentation
 README.md
 *.md
-.env
+.env.example
+.editorconfig
+
+# IDE
 .DS_Store
 .vscode
 .idea
+
+# Build artifacts (don't copy into container)
 tmp/
-logs/
\ No newline at end of file
+logs/
+*.log
+
+# Dependencies (install fresh in container)
+node_modules/
+
+# Environment
+.env
\ No newline at end of file
diff --git a/Dockerfile b/Dockerfile
index 600d958..20ad3ec 100644
--- a/Dockerfile
+++ b/Dockerfile
@@ -3,40 +3,39 @@ FROM golang:1.25-alpine AS builder
 
 WORKDIR /app
 
-# Install Node.js, npm, and curl for Tailwind CSS building
-RUN apk add --no-cache nodejs npm curl
+# Install system tools (cached well)
+RUN apk add --no-cache nodejs npm curl git
 
-# Install sqlc
-RUN go install github.com/sqlc-dev/sqlc/cmd/sqlc@latest
+# Install Go tools (cached well)
+RUN --mount=type=cache,target=/root/go/pkg/mod \
+    go install github.com/sqlc-dev/sqlc/cmd/sqlc@latest && \
+    go install github.com/a-h/templ/cmd/templ@latest
 
-# Install templ
-RUN go install github.com/a-h/templ/cmd/templ@latest
-
-# Copy package files and install npm dependencies
+# Copy package files and install npm dependencies (cached unless package.json changes)
 COPY package*.json ./
-RUN npm install
+RUN --mount=type=cache,target=/root/.npm \
+    npm ci
 
-# Copy source code
+# Copy Go mod files (cached unless go.mod changes)
+COPY go.mod go.sum ./
+RUN --mount=type=cache,target=/root/go/pkg/mod \
+    go mod download
+
+# Copy source code (this layer changes frequently)
 COPY . .
 
-# Download dependencies
-RUN go mod tidy
-
-# Generate sqlc code
+# Generate code (only these rebuild on source changes)
 RUN cd internal/database && sqlc generate
-
-# Generate templ code
 RUN cd templates && templ generate
 
-# Build Tailwind CSS and download htmx
+# Build frontend assets (only these rebuild on web/ changes)
 RUN npm run build:css:prod
 RUN npm run postinstall
-
-# Build TypeScript to JavaScript
 RUN npm run build:ts
 
-# Build the application
-RUN CGO_ENABLED=0 GOOS=linux go build -a -installsuffix cgo -o main ./cmd/server
+# Build Go binary (cached unless Go files or generated code changes)
+RUN --mount=type=cache,target=/root/go/pkg/mod \
+    CGO_ENABLED=0 GOOS=linux go build -a -installsuffix cgo -o main ./cmd/server
 
 # Test runner stage - includes Go runtime and test dependencies
 # This stage is ONLY used for running tests, never deployed to production
diff --git a/Makefile b/Makefile
index 1345b22..4d234e8 100644
--- a/Makefile
+++ b/Makefile
@@ -1,4 +1,4 @@
-.PHONY: help test test-integration test-all build build-force clean rebuild logs test-env-up test-env-down verify-guidelines verify-quick
+.PHONY: help test test-integration test-all build build-force clean rebuild rebuild-app restart up down logs ps test-env-up test-env-down verify-guidelines verify-quick
 
 # Include .env file for environment variables (single source of truth)
 # Ignore if .env doesn't exist yet
@@ -10,16 +10,30 @@ endif
 # Default target
 help:
 	@echo "Available targets:"
+	@echo ""
+	@echo "Development:"
+	@echo "  make up           - Start containers (if already built)"
+	@echo "  make build        - Build and start all containers"
+	@echo "  make rebuild-app  - Rebuild app container only (fast, for development)"
+	@echo "  make restart      - Restart app container (preserves db)"
+	@echo "  make down         - Stop all containers"
+	@echo "  make rebuild      - Clean, rebuild, and start all containers"
+	@echo "  make build-force  - Force rebuild without cache (slow, use if needed)"
+	@echo ""
+	@echo "Status & Logs:"
+	@echo "  make ps           - Show container status"
+	@echo "  make logs         - Show container logs (follow mode)"
+	@echo ""
+	@echo "Testing:"
 	@echo "  make test              - Run unit tests (from host, fast)"
 	@echo "  make test-integration  - Run integration tests (in containers, matches prod)"
 	@echo "  make test-all          - Run all tests (unit + integration)"
-	@echo "  make build             - Build and start containers"
-	@echo "  make build-force       - Force rebuild and start containers"
-	@echo "  make clean             - Stop and remove containers"
-	@echo "  make rebuild           - Clean, rebuild, and start containers"
-	@echo "  make logs              - Show container logs"
 	@echo "  make test-env-up       - Start containers with test mode enabled"
 	@echo "  make test-env-down     - Stop test environment"
+	@echo ""
+	@echo "Verification:"
+	@echo "  make verify-guidelines - Run comprehensive guidelines check"
+	@echo "  make verify-quick      - Run quick guidelines check"
 
 # Run unit tests locally (fast, no containers)
 test:
@@ -56,7 +70,7 @@ test-all: test test-integration
 build:
 	podman compose up --build -d
 
-# Force rebuild without cache
+# Force rebuild without cache (slow, use if needed)
 build-force:
 	podman compose build --no-cache
 	podman compose up -d
@@ -68,6 +82,30 @@ clean:
 # Clean rebuild (remove volumes, rebuild, start)
 rebuild: clean build
 
+# Quick start (if already built)
+up:
+	podman compose up -d
+
+# Stop all containers (alias for clean)
+down:
+	podman compose down
+
+# Rebuild app container only (fast, for development)
+rebuild-app:
+	@echo "Rebuilding app container only (database stays running)..."
+	podman compose up --build -d app
+	@echo "✓ App container rebuilt"
+
+# Restart app container (preserves database)
+restart:
+	@echo "Restarting app container (database stays running)..."
+	podman compose restart app
+	@echo "✓ App container restarted"
+
+# Show container status
+ps:
+	podman compose ps
+
 # Show container logs
 logs:
 	podman compose logs -f