Being a Millennial, gives me the opportunity on a daily basis, to understand the difference in the pace at which Gen. ‘Boomers’, and Gen ‘X’ imbibed concepts, and how we, the Gen ‘Y’ did our bit of learning, and continue to learn, along with the more promising Gen ‘Z’ to be! and the ones yet to become.
It wouldn’t be wrong though, to say that “DIGITAL NATIVES” are a creation of the “Boomers, and the Gen. X”, who today constantly struggle for that human touch with us natives.
I remember my father telling me during my teenage years “Deepthi, the more you meet people, the more you learn. Books give you the information you need, people give you unforgettable experiences. Learn to blend.”
I followed this very ardently until I gradually realized that, the physical presence of people I was meeting, graduated into virtual presence. I began to experience potential friends, becoming professional opportunists, and experiences shared across the table over a cup of tea in hand became case studies.
I wanted to tell myself many times that this is just a nightmare. But to my dismay, I found myself awake in the world of Virtual reality.
I started using the internet when it was quite expensive, 
and an exciting affair. I was just about lucky to have access to a machine which could substitute a notebook & a pen to write and could save my walk to the library and make me lethargic. It gave me instant information, made me more independent, and helped me conveniently forget most of the times that my family existed exactly where I was.
Everything kept passing by me like a cloud in the sky slowly yet very fast.
One day, I realized I was socializing with people from different cultures & Places, who had different views. I was playing, I was sharing thoughts, I could choose to exhibit any or only certain parts of my life to the outside world. I was all excited about the hullabaloo around me. When all of this was gushing within me, I wanted to hug, give a high five, and put my head on my loved one’s shoulder and cry, laugh out loud holding someone’s hand tightly. All my emotions demanded the physical presence of a person, next to me…
When I turned around, I realized I was in Isolation.
My first affair with social networking, introduced me to some yellow, red, and many colourful faces, as they pitied my isolation. These guys became my first “social Icons”
. They requested that I called them “Emoticons”, and after some time they demanded respect, something very prominent and natural in the culture I come from. I then called them “EMOJI”.
Life one day felt I was now capable enough to make my own living. I stepped out into a socially competitive world, which was well knit despite the fact that, mostly none who lived in it, could reach out to each other in flesh and bones. We all lived on the “WEB”
I chose a profession where, I could deliver my learning for the betterment of youth, employees of the organization I worked for, and the organization itself. I came to be called as an Instructor/ A Teacher/ or more “Jargonically”, A Process Trainer.
The need of the hour, & my organization, at that point in time, was to convert all classroom activities into simulations. Something such as Training which required a liberal platform to express knowledge was getting condensed into mechanized learning. Simulations meant I could not exchange views with my learners the moment they cropped up. I could not instantly clarify the doubts that would come to the minds of my students during the phase of their learning. I was allowed to exchange views and clarify doubts after the simulation ended. This in short meant loss of vital interest in the topic for the learner. However, this meant a deal of boon to me, as it gave me an opportunity to learn content development, & enhance visual creativity. This did not stop here. There was a future to it!
In less than little time, I explored into VILT outside corporate life. I had a wider audience & more interaction over specific agenda’s. Although VILT is not convenient for audiences who are not tech savvy’s, it gradually helps them in their transition into the new form of learning. Some feel challenged to pose questions during the session; this sometimes does slow down the learning process, but also helps in documenting common questions.
The one to one connection or human touch is lost today to an unreal world. 
There is no wall of separation between just ascertaining information and gaining knowledge. It wouldn’t be unreasonable on my part to say, that Internet, Gamification, and social networking needs a thoughtful exposure to its end users. But the saying is “Knowledge is best when it is spread”
Ease of accessibility to technology today blends virtues and vices into a unique delicacy called the Society we live in.
Millennials are the gateway to the future of Gen. “Z”. The decisions we make today hold the key to the lock of happiness of our Gen. “Z”.
I wish to conclude on a thoughtful note.“Today we live in a technological social Era. Let us be urban enough to leave a hopeful future for Gen “Z”.
All thoughts shared above are glimpses of my personal experiences. I am happy to have shared it on this platform.
-Article by Deepthi Musley