Usage
• Verbs expressing will, orders, need, advice etc: falloir – il faut qu’il vienne demain (it is necessary that he come, or more naturally, he must/has to come), and a host of related expressions such as il est normal que…, il est important que…,il vaut mieux que, proposer que, recommander que, suggérer que etc.

• Verbs expressing emotion, feeling etc (subjective use of the subjunctive): apprécier que, adorer que, avoir peur que/ craindre que (be afraid, fear that), regretter que, déplorer que, être triste/heureux/surpris que, il est inutile que (there’s no point/need…)

• Verbs expressing opinion, doubt, possibility etc (again subjectvity is the key): s’attendre à ce que – to expect (je m’attends à ce qu’il le fasse – I expect he’ll do it); il se peut que – it may be that; il est juste que – it is right/fair that; douter que – doubt that.
NB: The latter takes the indicative when used negatively; compare je doute qu’il vienne/je ne doute pas qu’il vient.

• Common – and tricky – verbs that only take the subjunctive in the negative and interrogative: croire/être sûr que : je crois qu’il a raison/ je ne crois pas qu’il ait raison penser/savoir/trouver/être sûr/être certain que : je pense qu’il est fort en maths/je ne pense pas qu’il soit fort en maths

• and finally, some conjunctions, the more common ones being: à condition que/pourvu que (provided that), à moins que (unless), afin que (so that), jusqu’à ce que (until), pour que (so that), quoique (even though) It really is worth remembering that most of the time, subjunctive is subjective.

Avoidance
Here are two strategies for avoiding the use of the subjunctive:
• In impersonal expressions, replace the que + subjunctive with the infinitive: Il faut que tu sois là => il faut être là. (You can compensate for the loss of precision with gestures, but there is often a subtle shift in meaning).

• Many of the above conjunctions requiring the subjunctive end in que. Que can be replaced with de or nothing, plus the infinitive. The subject of both clauses must be the same (or have a general sense). Il acceptera à condition qu’il soit rémunéré en conséquence (he’ll agree provided he’s paid accordingly) => Il acceptera à condition d’être payé… I wouldn’t recommend systematically avoiding the subjunctive: it’s a necessary evil (un mal nécessaire) of the French language and should really be learnt.