Would you mind expanding on your mindset a bit?

For me, the adage "Let the mission drive the gear" is always be in the back of my mind.

Mission and threat are going to play a huge roll in selecting my equipment. For instance, awhile back we got some Crye blast belts that someone thought would be a good idea. If we were still getting slammed with IEDs all the time that might be a piece of gear that I'd look to implement. But for walking in the mountains and driving around in civilian vehicles? Not just no, but hell no. Doesn't fit the mission, doesn't fit the threat, shouldn't be included.