There are ofcourse 2 ways to prevent this addition of complication (as should be deducted from the last line above):
First is to not come back to the main path once the side-path is ran its course. The so-called side-path become the main path as soon as you enter it, and if you later move to another path that path become your main path. Since you never intent to move back you do not set-aside short-term memory to remember where to move back to, therefore no complication is added.
Second way is when you do intent to move back but not have to set aside short-term memory, instead its long-term memory where information is stored. This switch from short-term memory to long-term memory dont come instantly, it needs repeatition - if you do a thing for a while your long-term memory take over and your short-term memory is left spare, thus complication is reduced.
Note that complication increase only when you use more short-term memory, and reduce only when you use less short-term memory.
Short-Term Memory
Short-Term Memory is very fast, almost instanteneous; its like when it looks like you already know the answer, the answer is at your "finger-tips" and requires no conscious thinking at your part.
Short-Term Memory is fast because its very little - not a lot can be saved in it. Since its very little no conscious linking is required to recall it and therefore you appear not thinking when recalling it.
Long-Term Memory
Long-Term Memory is opposite of Short-Term Memory. Its slow but vast. Since its vast it requires linking and thus thinking. Since it requires linking it requires repeatition of information to be saved in it.
What Goes In Short-Term Memory
Its not just information about previous-path-to-move-back-to that goes in Short-Term Memory. The other thing that is stored in it is values. These 2 are the only types of things that goes in Short-Term Memory: address of values, values.
Remember that wherever there is a division, at top-most level there is always division in 2 parts. In data its values and addresses-of-values.
How To Reduce Complication
[Consider this as your take-home lesson from this article]
Since complication increase only when usage of short-term memory increase and reduce only when usage of short-term memory reduce, the only way to reduce complication is to reduce usage of short-term memory.
Since both values and address-of-values goes in short-term memory reducing either reduce complication. Following are some tricks:
- Dont try to remember too many things at a time (reduce number of values in short-term memory). Make each process you use require as little values as can be managed, or make groups of values so at top level you not have to remember too many things at once but dont make more than 1 level of groups. Note that remembering 3 things at once when there is no grouping is already hitting limits of human brain, and with grouping you can increase that to 6 values at most.
- Dont go into another side-path (another level of indirection) when you are already inside a side-path. Once you are done processing the side-path you are already in, go back to main path and from there move to the next side-path. Make your processing structure accordingly. This is to follow only when you are not already doing compound side-pathing for a while, because if you are used to this i.e. have practise then its your long-term memory that is storing values - not short-term memory so number of address-of-values is not a concern.
- Use external memory if you must absolutely have to go inside deeper and deeper levels of side-paths and/or absolutely must have to remember more than 6 data-values at once in short-term memory. Use pen-and-paper or use software, but using pen-and-paper is usually much less complicated because most of the people are used to it much more than they are used to saving short-term stuff in software notes.
- Utilize another person. If work is really too much complicated then utilize services of another human being. Delegate tasks.
