Make the meeting fun, lively and upbeat, and cultivate . Ryding UK explains, "Everyone needs to know they can all learn something and they're not beating up and laughing at that little guy."

Turn a potentially threatening situation into an opportunity to "geek out" and talk shop, urges Geneca's Benson. "Keep the level of humor high. At the same time, balance this with an attention to quality and don't compromise the integrity of the architectural vision." The vision should be the benchmark for evaluating code, rather than appealing to subjective pronouncements about the "right" and "wrong" way to do things."

"When the reviewer offers a suggestion, or asks a question, the author shouldn't become offended and shutdown," says Czarny. "Similarly, a reviewer should never demand code be changed without explaining why they believe there is an issue.

Attitude Adjustment A Few Tips To Make Code Reviews Worthwhile E. William Horne, systems architect at William Warren Consulting, has several bits of advice to share, all of which come down to don't take it personally. "It's about finding errors before they bite you at 3:00am, not about making you feel good," he reminds developers.

Remember that there are a million ways to get the wrong result, but only a few to get the right one. If you're told to switch from the way that works for you to a way that works for someone else, just smile and do it. The most important thing is that it works.