I mentioned this below - I've been programming since 1986. It took me the last 7 years to really nail down that this duality of perspective (high-level, complete system vs. low-level, one aspect) was common across all successful projects I've lead or worked on.

By success I mean something that not only meets the stated requirements, but is also maintainable, extensible, secure, scales, and is available.

I'll leave it at that.