As every new generation enters the workforce, it never ceases to amaze me how quickly their generation is labeled with “attributes” that are common to young people. These attributes tend to stick, and they quickly become inaccurate as the generation ages (assuming they were even accurate in the first place).

Nowhere is this more evident than with Millennials, who by 2020 will make up more than 50% of the US workforce.

That’s why it’s so great to see that IBM decided we should quit making assumptions, and they conducted a global study that aimed to uncover what Millennials are really all about.

Here’s what they found:

Myth #1: Millennials have unrealistic career goals.

FACT: As it turns out, Millennials are just like everyone else in the workplace. They’re after financial and job security, first and foremost. And who can blame them? That’s a big part of why we work in the first place. So don’t expect your younger workers to make unrealistic requests of you and your company.

Myth #2: Millennials expect endless praise because they were raised in a culture of ‘everyone gets a trophy’.

FACT: Not only are Millennials not after endless praise, their #1 preference in a boss is the same as Boomers. Both want a fair boss who freely shares information. As it turns out, it’s Gen Xers who believe that everyone involved in a successful project should be rewarded, and members of this generation are in their early 30s-50s. Sounds like they are the ones misappropriating their inadequacies onto younger workers.