Last year I was one of the final five applicants of an intense internship program, but I didn’t get the position. I posted to Facebook how excited I was to even make it through that far, but for the next year, I had to correct people who saw my post, saying “No, I actually didn’t get it, but hey — I made it to the final five,” reassuring them of my accomplishment.

Their pitiful looks were enough to scare me away from posting anything of that sort on social media again.

I became afraid to fail in general, because I felt like I was failing publicly. So I watched inspirational movies, read quotes from billionaires, cried and ate simultaneously and finally brushed it off and moved on.

My point is that the sting of rejection isn’t as dismissible anymore. When the internet makes your shared life permanent you can choose to shy away from technology or adapt to how technology structures our development. I choose the latter and I motivate you to do the same.

Our parents and grandparents had it easy. When they fell down, their peers only heard of it well after they got up, tried again and finally succeeded. They never watched the messy process unfold. Therefore, failure wasn’t as intimidating.

But that shouldn’t be an excuse to settle. Don’t settle for a job you hate because it looks cool to others. Don’t settle with a person because of the happy lives others are sharing online.  Don’t settle for a lifestyle that is comfortable and safe just so no one sees you fail trying to get better. If you let your insecurity pull you away from your greatest potential, then you’re restricting society from someone who could change everything.

Post everything and anything or don’t post at all — just don’t hold yourself back because of the delusion that the watchful eyes of the internet matter. Your trial is a greater success than you know and your failures will lead to greater rewards than your immediate success. Commend yourself for taking on the world publicly.

Those of you who are going to be walking with me across that stage in May — let’s impress each other on a deeper level by being self-supportive. Independence and confidence aren’t handed to us with a diploma, and our journey certainly doesn’t end when we step off that stage. It’s nurtured in our day-to-day lives by one another, by ourselves and by our loved ones.

So don’t be afraid to share virtually or interpersonally. Communication is kind of our thing, isn’t it? Coming to a greater understanding of each other is what differentiates our generation and what makes us Millennials so marvelous.