Step away from the machine and grab paper and pencil. Work it out on paper, which also sets the pattern in your brain, making it easier to stitch when you have the design figured out.
I'm not sure what ( backtracking) you are doing on your cables, did you snap a picture before you ripped it all out?
You can run a line, stop, cut thread, go back to beginning to run next line.... But a picture of what exactly you are trying to do will help us give you more insight.