If you take a class on backpacking or read a book or learn "how to do it" elsewhere, a lot of rules of thumb are given that are often quite conservative, especially in terms of gear and clothing.
I guess my favorite advise would be to just recognize that, and over time feel your way to the right balance of being safe & comfortable via gear/clothing vs. (actually "plus") experience, common sense, wisdom, knowledge.

Put another way, sometimes we have to be able to un-learn some firmly held notions in order to find what are ultimately our personal best practices.