I truly believe that human brains didn’t evolve to process complex data. Human conscious mind can only hold three, maybe five, seven max for some geniuses, items at a time. Because of that, I have a very optimistic belief when I’m faced with something complex and overwhelming: nothing complex is possible to build or comprehend. It’s optimistic because I know that everything can be broken down into small components.
For example, a large corporation or huge country are run by small hierarchical groups of three to seven people. Any large computer system can be broken down to modules, submodules and procedures inside of these submodules. When faced with a new undertaking, a study or a seemingly complex system, I remind myself to keep things simple stupid, or to keep them simple, stupid.