Want to hear a joke? Two millennials walk in to a bar wearing skinny jeans, Converse sneakers while carrying iPhones. They are exactly the same, except one makes six-figures a year, and the other one works at Pizza Hut and lives with his mom.

I like jokes. But in all seriousness, I want to share my perspective on the word “millennial.” No, I do not mean millennial in the sense of 1,000 years, but the sense that has been growing for a while now to describe people born around 1980-2004.

Often the word “millennial” is thrown around as a dirty word, and the context that inevitably comes with it is one of a generation that is selfie-obsessed, socially-impaired, lazy, selfish, materialistic, hipster, narcissistic, Steve Jobs-idolizing, homeless looking, blah blah blah…the list is almost endless.

In my experience growing up watching the news and listening to different people, often the millennials have garnered a reputation of confidence to the point of narcissism, and a sense of entitlement to have everything now. I have heard some good, but as a whole, my experience has mostly been people criticizing the way we are. Like we are a failed experiment that is obsessed with finding the best craft beers and selfie lighting.

I, however, am of the opinion that millennial doesn’t have to be a dirty word. I think that we are a generation unlike anything the world has ever seen, and to some people, the mystery of where the millennial generation is heading is terrifying.

Most of the millennials I know and see today are incredibly accepting of others, open to new experiences, active in their communities and hobbies, and incredibly optimistic of the future. Not everyone will fall into the same mold though. There are still people that are afraid of change and reject what they are not comfortable with, but I have seen that slowly start to fall away.

I am not entirely sure where the reputation for being socially inept came for millennials, but if I had to guess, I would say that it came from people looking at screens, and others not knowing what was on them, or having their phone out during a concert or some grand adventure. But in reality, we are incredibly social. It’s even called “social media.” Granted, it is not face-to-face, but it is still communication. It allows us to be in constant contact, which I think it usually a pretty good thing. And for me personally, seeing posts and updates about awesome adventure just makes me want to go out and have awesome adventures as well.

How the millennials act and believe is not the result of some failed experiment. The technology we have at our disposal is mostly a good thing, and has allowed us to socialize and shape our lives in ways that before now have not been possible. Just think, if 40 years ago people could have looked up which restaurant around them was highly rated, or had a certain kind of food, or could have talked to someone face-to-face on a video call halfway around the world, those people would be somewhat similar to the millennials of today.

There are a lot of factors as to why people in society behave the way that they do, and I in no way claim to be a sociology expert. But to me, the way that the millennials are is simply the result of an evolving society, and that a lot of what people see now as a strange generational thing will become somewhat of a new normal. That’s not to say that all of the technology, and how we use it, is good, but there is always social change with new technologies. Just look at the Industrial Revolution. With all of that new technology, the lives of those at the time was drastically changed. We are simply just using what we have at our disposal, and we can’t really be blamed for that.

However, it is up to us to use what we have responsibly, and make wise decisions. We can’t be reckless kids forever, but I say that we as millennials should take that word and embrace it as a mantle to be worn with pride. We have the ability to shape the perceptions of those around us, and we should want nothing less than to be known as positive, active, social, and wise. We should take the negative reputation that the word millennial has garnered, and change the world for the better. It will soon be our world, so we should work to make it a great place. Hey, look. Some of that optimism I mentioned earlier.

So, rise up my fellow millennials! Rise up, and hold those iPhones high!