It truly amuses me how our generation of millennials has caused such a stir in the world around us. We have grown up as digital natives, in a time of rapid technological change, of economic disruption, of several reality checks to safety (9/11 and the rise of school shootings). Perhaps, not surprisingly, we are the most studied, the most diverse, and now, the largest generation in U.S. history. I would also add that we are the most misunderstood, with many sweeping generalizations made about us, about how our faces are glued to our screens, how we no longer value or have skills in face-to-face communication.

We have been given many names, labels, and have received a large amount of criticism, with some praise here and there. It is no wonder though, that we have become caught up in this hipster movement," of reaching back to past generations to draw from their identities, to break free from our identity. I see how desperately we try to escape the idea that we have had the world at our fingertips, that we have been privileged with such discoveries in our time as the Internet and smartphones.

Our hype of social media has given lead for others to call us self-obsessed, superficial, removed from reality. And though there may be truth in that, our pull towards social media is beyond that. We long to feel connected to those around us, we enjoy self-expression and the opportunity to share who it is we are with others. We value the individual, and we value the global reach that technology has provided us. We are not so narcissistic as some may believe.

We are confident, though. Studies have shown us to have strong relationships with our parents, causing many of us to be big dreamers, with can-do attitudes. Many of us see the troubles and issues that are being passed down to us and believe it is up to us to fix it, up to us to save us. We certainly have the ambition and motivation to save the world, and how could we not? We have already set the tone and shaken up quite a few ideas already. Well, if we are going to save the world, there are a few things we need to learn.

First and foremost, those studies and labels put on us, have some truth in them. As millennials, we do get caught up in self-expression, and sometimes our value of self, of the individual says, do what you want to, all the while disregarding the affect it may have on others. We are a generation that is bound together by technology, and we need to accept and embrace this. Yet, we also need to be aware of it.

Second lesson is that we need to work at putting our goals and dreams into action. A Facebook post about your disgust in poverty is wonderful and all, but why not log off Facebook and do something about it instead? We are notorious for expressing how we feel about certain issues, but what is it that we are doing to help? We need to learn how to organize ourselves, to put our words into action, work hard for something we believe in. We can use our digital knowledge to aid us, to create awareness or spread the word to band together on a certain day.

Third lesson is this: we need to be more mindful, to disconnect ourselves from our electronics and actually take time to live in the moment and in the world around us -- be alone with our thoughts and reflect on our lives. As scary as that sounds, how else will we make sure that we are living our lives to their best potential, achieving our big dreams? This is the best way to ensure that we continue to be the hero in this story of us and not the villain. That we are the solution, and not the problem, that we will not pass down the same issues and problems that were passed down to us.

I have no doubt that if we learn these lessons, the millennial generation will give some actual reasons for people to talk about us so much. And then we can say it was the generation whose faces were glued to their screens that actually got up and did something. We are so much more than that, and it's time we show it. Time to show the world who it is we truly are.