This document contains the notes from a presentation by Gonçalo Chaves on SQL databases. It discusses challenges in database development including lack of SQL knowledge by engineers, poor scalability by novices, and common mistakes made like overuse of views and queries without limits. It provides tips on database design best practices such as normalization, appropriate keys and indexes, data types, handling NULL values correctly, and balancing integrity and performance. Debugging and monitoring tools are also recommended. The importance of documentation, testing, and maintenance is stressed.