OPINIONS Page 3 August 14, 2018

EDITORIAL The Opinion of The Pharcyde

The Class of 2018’s successes challenge us

We are always burdened by the expectations placed on top of us,
but, this year, the bar has been set higher than in most other years.
The 2017-2018 school year was one of the strongest in recent
memory. From academics, to college placement, to sports, to arts, the
School experienced success in many disciplines.
The academic success was shared by many of our campus
organizations. BTV N3WS and The Pharcyde won prestigious
awards, respectively the Florida Scholastic Gold Medal and Columbia
Scholastic Press All-American. As for the School’s arts program,
37 students received 118 awards from the National Scholastic Art
Association, with multiple students receiving the highest “gold key”
distinction.
This success was also evident on the playing field, where the
Buccaneers had many successful sports seasons that culminated in
the School receiving the Cary McDonald Award from the Florida
Athletic Coaches Association and the Floyd E. Lay Sunshine Cup
All-Sports Award from the Florida High School Athletic Association,
both awards recognizing the School as the top athletic program in
the state. In addition, 28 members of the class of 2018 will continue
playing their sport at the collegiate level.
As the 2018-2019 school year begins, we are now faced with
the difficulty of living up to this high standard that has been set for
us. To meet this level of excellence, The Pharcyde suggests that
students recognize this legacy that has been left for us to honor and
encourages all students to exert additional effort in all disciplines for
the sake of our classmates, our school, and those who have come
through the School before us.
This legacy may appear as a burden placed on our shoulders, but
we should not be intimidated by it. We should be honored to be a
part of a school that has accomplished so much in the past year, and
we should be motivated from within ourselves and by our school
community to do our best.
Many elements of our success cannot be controlled. Our fate may
not be ours to own. It may lie in the hands of an admissions officer,
a judge, or a referee. However, the one element of success that is
unaffected by random factors is effort. A year from now, we should
not measure our performance based on the accolades we receive or
the colleges that we get into but rather on how hard we worked to get
where we are.
Hard work will not go unnoticed. Others might not see the effort
that is exerted, but, even if you do not receive accolades, you will
receive the reward of learning to appreciate hard work.
*The Editorial is the opinion of
The Pharcyde and therefore has
no single name attached to it.

Positive habits are essential to achieving goals

By Robert Rubin
Co-Editor in Chief
The 2018-2019 school year starts today. And it won’t end for
another 283 days. May 24th might seem like a date far in the future,
but, according to research, actions and the habits that you build
during this first week will play a large part in deciding whether you
reach your goals by the end of this year and by the end of your high
school career.
As students, we like to think that we have free will and control
our own destiny with the choices that we make. However, most of
the actions in which we take part each day are not controlled directly
by ourselves but are controlled by our habits. Our bodies are wired
to do what we are used to doing, whether the action be good or bad.
Whatever your school-year’s resolution is, it will be hard to
accomplish without examining your lifestyle and rewriting your
habits. You will not be a better athlete by going for a run once a week,
and you will not become a better student by studying until 2:00 a.m.
one night before a test.
In order to develop strong, positive habits, you must understand
how habits work. In The Power of Habit, author Charles Duhigg
analyzed the science of habits, and he broke the habits down into
three main components: cue, routine, and reward. A cue is any aspect
of one’s daily life that triggers a routine to take place, and by doing
the routine, he or she experiences a reward that reinforces the “habit
loop.” This simple code is what wires us to do most of our daily
activities without even thinking about them.
When you drive to school, for example, you never need to
actively remember the directions because this habit loop exists:
Cue: See the sign for Grandiflora Road
Routine: Turn west on Grandiflora Road
Reward: Arrive at The Benjamin School
Without having to think about it, we rarely make a wrong turn.
However, many habit loops can form to reinforce unproductive
activity. Students may be familiar with this one:
Cue: Arrive home from school
Routine: Go on social media for an hour
Reward: Decompress after a long school day because you are
relaxed
While social media is not harmful in small doses, habits like
these tend to become stronger and stronger until they are harmfully
coded into your brain. All of a sudden, you may have a night activity
and need to get homework done right when you get home, but, as
soon as you receive the cue of arriving at home, your brain will
automatically anticipate the reward of relaxing and draw you to the
routine of social media.
While habits may be hard to change, it is possible to change them
if you understand how they work. According to Duhigg, habits are
not broken; they are changed. The best way to change a habit is to
keep the cue and reward constant while changing the routine. If you
want to start doing homework when you get home, you can modify
your habit loop to be:
Cue: Arrive home from school
Routine: Read your current English book for 30 minutes
Reward: Decompress after a long school day and be done with
some of your homework
Conversely, if you are a night owl, here is another approach:
Cue: Arrive home from school
Routine: Take a 30-minute nap
Reward: Decompress after a long school day and have more
energy to do your homework
As this year begins, examine your strengths and weaknesses, and
set aside goals that you want to accomplish. If it involves making a
new habit, identify what you want your cue, routine, and reward to
be. You may need to use your willpower to begin a new habit, but
once the habit loop forms, it will be hard to stop. If your goal involves
changing an old habit, find a way to introduce a new routine while
maintaining the original cue and reward.
It does not matter how motivated you are to get better grades,
become a better athlete, become a better artist, become a better
musician, or become a better person if you do not make it a habit.
Without habits, you may only have half-measures.

Freshmen: Welcome to the big leagues

By Sam Fox
Co-Executive Editor
The first day of school consistently terrifies the influx of freshmen
each year. The idea that all of their grades will count and that they
will be walking the same hallways as the intimidating seniors are just
some of their biggest concerns.
Although entering high school may scare the living daylights
out of you, the rest of us have been in those shoes before, and to be
honest, freshman year is not all that bad. Still, it is important to hear a
few points of advice before starting your high school careers.
First of all, you guys might be all revved up for high school and
be anxious to succeed, but you don’t need to sign up for 30 different
clubs at the club fair. Although you may be seriously trying to fulfill
your childhood dreams of going to Yale, top colleges would actually
rather see you invest your time by doing fewer activities and getting
deeply involved in them.
Another thing to consider is purchasing durable school supplies
that will last you the entire year. Buy some three-ring binders with
durable hinges to keep your documents and notes organized, a really
big backpack, and maybe even a sturdy planner or calendar because
PHARCYDE EDITORIAL BOARD
The
we all know those Benjamin planners won’t last a single month
without ripping. Also, whatever you do, just please, do yourself a
favor and not get a suitcase backpack.
The freshmen lockers are situated in a central part of the campus,
so you should try not to be those mobs of freshmen every year that
blockade the walkways and staircase that the rest of the school passes
through regularly. Please try and find a better spot for your friendly
conversations or rants about how impossible your Honors Geometry
quiz was (If you think that class is hard, just wait until you get to AP
Calculus).
Homecoming is a favorite tradition at the Upper School, but
every year, the freshmen are often intimidated to participate in events.
However, feel free to get your friends together and participate in the
activities, even if all of the upperclassmen boo you, which they will.
Homecoming can be a really fun week, and you definitely want your
whole grade to actively participate and show school spirit.
Make sure to also leave all of the nonsense from middle school
behind. As a student in the Upper School, you have numerous
responsibilities, and you simply don’t have time to deal with middle
school “drama.” All of the incoming freshmen are in the same boat,
and about one-third of you guys are new to the School. Thus, it is a
good idea to branch out and expand your friend group now before
everyone has their established friend groups for the rest of high
STAFF WRITERS Press Association, Columbia
Scholastic Press Association
school.
Finally, don’t be afraid to talk to upperclassmen. We’re
really not that scary, and at times, we are actually very insightful.
However, remember that you’re still just a freshman. Don’t intrude
on our conversations with other people--because you haven’t
gotten there yet, buddy.
Despite being at the bottom of the hierarchy, it is great to
be a freshman sometimes. You don’t have to worry about what
colleges you are applying to or how you perform on standardized
testing. Also, most of you are not taking AP courses yet, and
you even still have the luxury of finding what it is that you’re
passionate about.
Take advantage of this first year of high school by
developing great study habits, trying different extracurricular
activities that interest you, and utilizing your free time to the
maximum amount. Still, freshman year has an equal impact in
your cumulative GPA as every other year, so you need to take
your studies seriously.
Freshman year might seem daunting, but there is no reason
to fear it. Just stay organized, get involved in different activities,
study hard, meet new people, and most importantly, let the
chants of “GO HOME FRESHMEN” roll off your back. (Don’t
go home crying; it’s just tradition!)
Send your feedback, criticism, or like to place an advertisement
outside opinions in 150 words or in The Pharcyde, please contact

Xiao Liu, Skyler Zur

Founded in 1980 as The Spectator
August 14, 2018 Volume 40, Issue 1
The Benjamin School
4875 Grandiflora Road
Palm Beach Gardens, Florida
33418
Contact Info
Phone: 561-472-3485
Fax: 561-691-8823
Advisor: Mr. Ken Didsbury
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Jack Goetschius Co-Editor in Chief
Robert Rubin Co-Editor in Chief
Sam Fox Co-Executive Editor
Jack Spingarn Co-Executive Editor
Christian Baldari Copy Editor
Marissa Dalton Managing Editor
Caroline Moody Production Editor
Nico Pei Social Media Editor
MISSION STATEMENT
The Pharcyde is a student
newspaper produced to foster
an open dialogue about top-
ics that relate to The Benjamin
School. The issues that appear
throughout our pages may be
light-hearted or serious, but
regardless we aim to reflect the
diversity of opinion within our
school that we value so deeply.
MEMBERSHIP
The Pharcyde is a member of
the Florida Scholastic Press As-
sociation, American Scholastic
and the National Scholastic
Press Association.
GENERAL
The Pharcyde, the Upper
School newspaper of The Ben-
jamin School, is published seven
times a year. 1,200 copies of
The Pharcyde are distributed
to 450 students and 45 faculty
member and are available in
the Upper School office. Each
issue is mailed to every Upper
School family’s home address.
The Pharcyde encourages sub-
mission of Letters to the Editor.
fewer to james.goetschius19@ Jack Goetschius or Robert Ru-
thebenjaminschool.org or rob- bin at james.goetschius19@the-
ert.rubin19@thebenjaminschool. benjaminschool.org or robert.
org The Pharcyde reserves the rubin19@thebenjaminschool.org
right to edit all letters for length,
grammar, and clarity. The opinion articles in this pa-
per are the opinion of the writer
or the majority opinion of The
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