diff --git a/docker-compose.yml b/docker-compose.yml
index ce5769b..1090668 100644
--- a/docker-compose.yml
+++ b/docker-compose.yml
@@ -14,7 +14,7 @@ services:
     entrypoint: ["./test_project/wait-for-postgres.sh"]
     ports:
       - "${APP_PORT:-8000}:${APP_PORT:-8000}"
-    command: python test_project/manage.py runserver 0.0.0.0:${APP_PORT:-8000}
+    command: bash -c "python test_project/manage.py migrate && python test_project/manage.py runserver 0.0.0.0:${APP_PORT:-8000}"
   docs:
     build: .
     volumes:
diff --git a/docs/contributing.md b/docs/contributing.md
index 42f8e29..5ea721b 100644
--- a/docs/contributing.md
+++ b/docs/contributing.md
@@ -79,20 +79,19 @@ At this point, you'll be in a bash shell inside your container, and can run deve
 
 The Docker Compose setup is configured to run a simple test project that you can use to tinker with the dashboard interactively.
 
-To set this up, first run:
+To use it, run:
 
 ```
-docker-compose run app python test_project/manage.py migrate
-docker-compose run app python test_project/manage.py createsuperuser
+docker-compose up
 ```
 
-You will now be prompted to enter details about a new superuser. Once you've done that, run:
+Then, in a separate terminal, run:
 
 ```
-docker-compose up
+docker-compose run app python test_project/manage.py createsuperuser
 ```
 
-You can now visit the example app's dashboard at http://localhost:8000/.
+You will now be prompted to enter details about a new superuser. Once you've done that, you can visit the example app's dashboard at http://localhost:8000/.  After entering the credentials for the superuser you just created, you will be able to tinker with the dashboard.
 
 ### Editing the documentation
 
@@ -129,11 +128,7 @@ The project's Python dependencies are all baked into the container image, which
 docker-compose build
 ```
 
-You may also want to apply any new migrations that were added to the codebase:
-
-```
-docker-compose run app python test_project/manage.py migrate
-```
+You will also want to restart `docker-compose up`.
 
 ### Cleaning up