Perpetual Beta is a term that I've latched onto over the past few months. Blogged about it (and how to quantify it), been interviewed about it. It's part of my DNA.

When you commit yourself to the idea that you are "never done," you can tolerate mistakes more quickly, learn from them, and improve more rapidly.

You never go out of your way to do something sub-standard, of course.

However, when you approach a situation with a mindset of

"I'm going to do my best and since I'm in perpetual beta, I recognize that there's going to be a learning opportunity as a result of this moment," you prepare yourself to accept failure and that makes you more comfortable with risk.

And it is through risk-taking that you grow.

A number of people who have been laid off approached me following my nice mention in the NY Times asking for advice on how to "reinvent themselves."

One of the things I always recommend is to "get more comfortable taking risks." Start small and, of course, don't be stupid, but like diet and exercise, it can be a habit that really makes an impact.

One of my favorite bloggers of late is Olivier Blanchard and I suggest you read his excellent post on this topic: "You are always in beta." 

So, what (smart) risk did you take today?