You've heard the buzz: Millennials are job-hopping slackers, with eyes continually glued to their mobile phones lest they miss a text from the person sitting right across from them.

But it's a false picture, according to a new Bentley University study that dispels a number of Millennial myths.

It turns out Millennials are ambitious, hardworking, loyal to companies that treat them right, and eager to put down their phones at work and stop by for a chat.

Looking for an Entrepreneurial Workplace

The study, which polled more than 1,000 Millennials to learn about their preparedness for professional life, found that far from being slackers, they have enormous career energy. Some 66 percent want to start their own business, and another 37 percent want to work independently.

Even those who work for companies think like entrepreneurs.

“They're entrepreneurial more as a mindset than in terms of hanging up a shingle," says Susan Brennan, executive director of career services at Bentley. “They want to work for organizations that are less hierarchical and more entrepreneurial."

Loyal to Those Who Value Them

When they find the right company, Millennials want to stick around. Contrary to the job-hopper stereotype, 80% said they believe they'll work for four or fewer companies in their lifetime. They value companies that listen, help them develop their talents, and offer frequent raises.

John T. Jones, 24, has been with his current company, USA Financial, for just 10 months, and it's only his third job out of college, but he's not going anywhere soon.

“I have no intentions of leaving for another company for a very long time—if at all," he says.

Recruiters have come calling, some offering more money, but Jones isn't interested. “I've found a company that values employees and has above average benefits. When people turn 55, they're not set out to pasture," he adds. "The company goes out of its way to find things people are good at. Now that I've seen that, I'm not going anyplace else,."

Benefits—and Going it Alone

Jones' nod to benefits touches on another important point in the survey: When choosing between two otherwise equal jobs, 96 percent said great healthcare benefits would be the most important factor in their decision. Employers thinking of scaling back might want to keep that in mind.

Those who go the entrepreneurial route would seem to defy the emphasis on benefits and job security, but in context, their actions make sense. With Obamacare, they can stay on their parents' insurance until age 26. And starting an Internet-based business requires little capital risk. Some were affected by seeing their parents lose jobs during the recession.

“They've experienced seeing their parents in the economic downturn," Brennan says. "They've seen disappointment, and they think, why not shape my own path, control my own destiny?" 

Hard Work and Perseverance

“I've always seen myself as an entrepreneur," says Jessica Mah, 24, who started the accounting services company that would become Indinero from her Berkeley dorm room.

But building her company wasn't easy.

“I've been to hell and back 20 times," Mah says. The low point came two and a half years ago, when she and her partner had to lay off staff and close the office while hunkering down in a parent-financed apartment as they tried to think of a fix. They shifted to a full-service—and pricier—business model that stopped the bleeding. Today, Indinero is a $3 million company.

Running a company requires a tremendous work ethic as well as perseverance—Jessica routinely puts in 70- and 80-hour weeks. “But most of it is fun," she says.

An enjoyable workplace is important to Millennials, and friendship is an integral part of the job. But the work ethic is still there—89 percent regularly check work emails after hours, the study found.

Workplace communication

While older generations think Millennials prefer texting and social media, more than half in the study said they prefer to talk to colleagues in person.

“There's nothing like face-to-face communication," Jones says.

Mah is no texter, either—at least, not at work. She talks to colleagues in person and has key staff write reports before attending meetings.

Millennials are good at tailoring their form of communication to the audience. Outside the office, Jones, whose job is digital marketing and communications manager, texts friends, but phones family. “For mom and grandmother seeing 'LOL', the vibe is not right," he says.

And even though he values the security his job offers, he wouldn't be a Millennial if he didn't have an entrepreneurial side, too. After hours he runs a digital marketing and website company of his own, helping earlier generations bridge the technology gap.

“I take mom and pop companies into the 21^st century, doing things like creating a Facebook page for a business that's been running for 40 years," he says.