One of the first bad habits you pick up when riding a bicycle is not observing stop signs. Yes, you will (hopefully) check there is no traffic but I rarely see anybody come to the full stop if nobody is around. And I was regularly guilty of the same.
If you live in Washington state this is no longer infraction. As of October 1st, Safety Stop law turns all stop signs into yields if you're on a bicycle.
While I am doubtful about it increasing safety, I am sure it won't decrease it and it will make bike ride much smoother - even when cops are around. It's about the time. :)