It is a very simple Smart Phone case. It is a dark color and classically textured on the back and the sides of the case look smooth and metallic in his hand. I remember thinking that I'd likely drop it if my phone was in a case like that. He doesn’t drop his though, and the reason I know this is because the majority of the time that I’ve noticed his phone-in-hand it has been during my one-on-one meetings with him.He is my boss, but his mobile device has authority over me.

We’ve all seen it before; the downward gaze staring into the tiny screen as the digital glaze quickly covers their face. They slip from your conversation on to something infinitely more important on their connected device as the last word they could formulate disappears slowly from their lips without actually being finished.

If you are someone’s boss and this description has you suddenly wondering if you’ve given the “digital nod” during conversations with your direct reports, the outlook isn’t good. Chances are if you are not actively diverting your attention towards the human counterpart of the conversation at hand, then you are quite-unknowingly committing this social atrocity. And it isn’t the smartphone to blame. Have you ever had a conversation with someone while they sat at their desk and you’d swear they were playing a rousing game of Solitaire while you were speaking? This problem of active disengagement has existed long before technology swept us away. It’s existed for so long that many of us don’t recognize our indifference between the human-faces and the tiny digital screens.

It’s about connection people! It always has been, but our love for our devices is making a mockery out of the human experience. I like my smartphone just like the next person but I know that there is only one source of true enjoyment, one location that I can experience momentary happiness and savor it until the memory drags a residual smile across my face at a later time. I might laugh at a silly cat being swung by a ceiling fan on YouTube, but I’d rather have a funny banter-filled conversation with my coworkers, which is also known as: a genuine human connection.

Look, my workday is filled with technology from enough screens and hardware to keep the neediest tech-junkie stoned for days. But I have become ultra-sensitive to the drones in business meetings staring at their screens while someone talks. So - New Rule: Cell phones, smartphones and devices that are carried, or have an Internet connection and for whatever reason aren’t considered in either of the first two categories ARE NOT ALLOWED IN MEETINGS. Don’t even bring it hidden in your pocket because we won’t go for the “but it’s on silent” excuse anymore because that vibrating noise can be heard by all mammals within a two block radius. There’s nothing “silent” about an object vibrating in someone’s pants pocket or vibra-dancing across a table.

It’s called a meeting because the intent was for two or more people to connect with each other and to discuss common interests. Our devices have dramatically changed all aspects of our human interactions and while this may not be the first message ranting about this subject, it may be the first to blame the people holding and intimately loving their devices rather than the devices themselves. It’s our own fault and we shouldn’t do it, or tolerate it from others any longer.

Thank you to my special guest contributor,co author, and amazing husband Jesse Silva.