This is a featured student article written by CMASAS student Anya. 

Over a week’s span, billions of plastic straws are used and thrown out almost instantly slowly making their way into the vast ocean. It might be a small object but it does have a very big influence on the environment. Sophie Hahn, Berkeley’s city Councilwoman, states that “A half-billion straws are used each day in the U.S and may of them end up in our waterways. They are not biodegradable, and there are alternatives.”

Straws are small objects, and when they flow out of the storm drains they end up threatening 500 species of wildlife, and 23 endangered species that live nearby. Not to mention that fish and birds often mistake these objects as food.

In our previous post, we explored the final habit in Sean Covey’s “Seven Habits of Highly Effective Teens,” a book that helps teens live their highest aspirations. (You can read about Habit #7 here.) This book is so life-changing, we send it to all full-time students upon enrolling! Today, we’re closing our nine-part mini-series with a brief summary of all seven habits and quick, actionable take-aways our CMASAS students can begin today!

Habit 1: Be Proactive. Take responsibility for your life. For as much as people like to be in control, we also sometimes give away our control to keep from being responsible if things go sideways. In any given day, bad things happen. The sky rain-dumps on your interview outfit, your sister stole your hoodie, the store was out of gumdrops. Covey explains how being proactive (versus being reactive) means understanding that you’re in control of you (and nothing else… i.e. hoodie-stealers or gumdrop-lacking establishments.)

Here’s Seven Actionable Take-aways:

Covey has seven tips to help you become a proactive-master. Over the next week, try implementing one a day, and see how it feels.

Habit #7: Sharpen the Saw 

So you’re walking through the wood, and you see a man sawing away at a tree.

“How long have you been sawing that tree?” you ask.

“Four hours,” he replies. “But I’m really making progress.”

You frown, looking at the saw. “Your blade looks pretty dull. Maybe you should sharpen it?”

“I can’t stop now, you simpleton,” the man scoffs. “I’m in the middle of cutting down this tree!”

You shrug and walk away, knowing that if he just took a break to sharpen the saw, he’d fell the tree much faster.