The McAllister Code is a fictional approach to marketing that is out of this world! Go on a journey through time and space as two aliens convince Steve McAllister to turn his hometown of Sarasota, Florida into a marketing mecca. Filled with great information, a lot of laughs, and a story about getting back to the basics of humanity that will keep the pages turning, The McAllister Code is a must for anyone seeking purpose in their business and in life.

In the midst of a brutal hurricane season, after seeing an incomprehensible object shoot through the night sky, Steve McAllister receives a strange email stating that his latest book has been picked up for publication. The only problem is that he hasn’t written it. Setting out to unearth the mystery of the errant press release, Steve meets two aliens who charge him with a foreboding task – turn the city of Sarasota, Florida into a marketing mecca.

With a handful of guiding principles and a bevy of philosophical ideologies, the two wise-cracking extraterrestrials take Steve on a journey through time and space in order to teach him the finer points of industry and how his community can prosper in the new millennium. Filled with humor, wisdom, and intrigue, The McAllister Code is the definitive allegorical journey of one man on a quest to write his world.
As the Second Iteration of The McAllister Code comes to life via this blog, catch up with how it all began by ordering a copy of The McAllister Code: The First Iteration eBook.

Throughout the month of February, 50% of all eBook sales from this website will go to Haitian relief.
As an added BONUS, if you order The McAllister Code now, you will also get a free copy of the 38 page eBooklet “Developing Positive Habits in Social Network Marketing” by Steve McAllister!

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I seem to have dozed off there for a minute. I had the strangest dream. You know how when you first wake up from a strange dream, and all of the images are jumping around in your mind, flaring up like little wisps of light, color, and sound, and they all seem to be unconnected and interconnected at the same time? Okay, so maybe it’s just me.

Nevertheless, I have this sense that I’m supposed to be doing something. It’s like I have a purpose of some kind, but I’m not sure exactly what it is. The visions I was talking about, the ones in the dream, they took different forms, but they seemed to center around four key components: mind, spirit, body, and heart. How they pertain to what I’m supposed to do exactly isn’t quite apparent to me at this point, but one phrase keeps coursing through my mind… Write the World.

It seems like such an easy task, right? I mean, I’ve been writing a daily inspirational blog called Your Daily Groove over at Modern Hippie Mag for a few months now, and I’ve got my InkenSoul and Found Marbles blogs where I’ve been posting my own stuff as well as other things that I find interesting and educational. Yet, I think there is more that I need to be doing.

I have an idea for a novel that I’ve been kicking around for awhile, and I’m really itching to write another screenplay. I’ve always wanted to try my hand at writing for the stage as well. And of course, I’ve got a ton of ideas for articles and essays. However, when one sets out to Write the World, where does one start?

I immediately recognized the office of the woman the aliens called Jessica, and was glad that we didn’t have to scale the side of the building again to get there. Jessica was at her desk, snacking on a fingernail as she read over a document on her desk.

“She looks nervous,” I said.

“Nothing gets by you,” said Yewell.

“What’s her deal?”

“You might say that she’s laying it all out on the table.”

“How so?”

“See the document she’s reading?” said Iman.

“Yeah.”

“It’s a collection of her observances about her company, the ways that it has been ineffective, and the ways that it can improve.”

“It’s pretty thick.”

“She’s been here for five years,” said Yewell. “She’s had a bit of time to notice a thing or two.”

“This is her Supreme Ordeal?”

“Like we said, she’s hit the glass ceiling. She’s gotten as far up into the company as she can go by doing her job and doing it well. She hasn’t stepped on toes, and she hasn’t crossed any boundaries. This dissertation though, it calls for a quite a few changes that she fears some may not be ready for. Nevertheless, this is her way of taking her company from good to great.”

“Why is she so nervous about it?”

“Corporate America is still very much of a boy’s club. And you know how boys are.”

“We don’t like to be told what to do.”

“Exactly,” said Iman. “While the Supreme Ordeal always involves stepping out of your comfort zone, sometimes it involves trying to draw people out of theirs, and that’s not always an easy thing to do.”

“And it can sometimes have some fairly precarious repercussions,” added Yewell.

“Then why bother?” I asked. “I mean, she seems to be doing fine. She’s got an office with a view. Based on her clothes, she seems to be making some pretty good bank.”

“Because good enough is not good enough when you’re trying to be great,” Iman said. “Look at the rest of Corporate America and how they are coping with the changing market. They are making strides in green energy and recycling initiatives. They are incorporating new technologies and marketing methods.”

“But they’re also outsourcing and sending jobs overseas,” I said.

“Like we said, the outcome may not always seem heroic, but the initiative is. For Jessica, though she’s played it safe for most of her career, she’s still managed to do quite well for herself. However, she wants more for herself, her company, and her community. Getting more means taking a risk.”

“Whether or not Angeline gets the part is irrelevant,” said Yewell. “The important thing is that she got on the stage. Whether Carter makes it as a blogger doesn’t matter. What matters is that he is putting his skills and talents to use in order to help other people. It doesn’t matter if Adam gets the girl. What matters is that he asked. And whether Jessica’s company integrates these changes or not, she has outlined an astounding plan that someone, whichever company has the foresight to realize her true value, can implement in order to improve upon their operations.”

“So you’re saying that it doesn’t matter if we succeed or not, as long as we try?”

“We’re saying that that as long as you try, you are experiencing success,” said Iman. “The Supreme Ordeal, the entire Hero’s Journey, is for you, each of you. It is for you to reach your highest potential. The world will catch up in its own time. But what is important is that you make the effort and make the best of whatever result you get. What is important is that you continually dedicate yourself to excellence. That will define your success.”

When we vanished from the confines of Carter’s computer, the smell of cigarette smoke hit me before anything else. It immediately hit me that overcoming my dependence upon them was, for me, a Supreme Ordeal I had faced some time ago. Still, whenever I smell them, those memories come back to haunt me. Fortunately, the music that wafted through the air with the smell of tobacco was enough to redirect my attention.

Iman, Yewell, and I were perched on the rail of the deck at Siesta Key Oyster Bar. From the young girl playing acoustic guitar at the microphone and all of the other people holding guitars in the audience, I gathered that it was open mic night.  As the girl finished to a round of applause, Iman nudged me and pointed to the young man who rose and took his place at the microphone.

“Remember him?” he said. Read more »

“We’ve got a few more ordeals to face?” I said. “I don’t recall the you part of the we being much part of the last one.”

“We were there in spirit,” said Yewell.

“Yeah, I’ll bet you were.”

“We’ll stick closer on the next one,” assured Iman.

“What’s the next one?”

The aliens looked at one another and smiled.

“I really hate it when you do that,” I said.

Yewell shrugged. “You’ll get over it.” Read more »

“I have the strength to overcome what?” I asked.

“Whatever challenge your journey offers you,” said Iman. “Each of you has it. You’re just not all aware of it. However, by going into your Inmost Cave and realizing the strength within you, you prepare yourself for facing whatever challenges come from without.”

“Would you like us to show you?” asked Yewell.

“I suppose it couldn’t be worse than the Inmost Cave.”

“That’s exactly the point,” said Iman. Read more »

We were completely engulfed in darkness. I could no longer see either of the aliens. I could not even see my hand in front of my face.

“What happened?” I called into the void.

“The Inmost Cave is the heart of your darkness,” one of the aliens said, I couldn’t tell which one. The submergence into blackness was more than disorienting; it was nearly maddening. Read more »

“So that’s it?” I said. “We answer the call to adventure, have someone to guide us through it, and we become light bearers?”

“Becoming a light bearer is not as simple as it sounds,” said Iman.

“It never is,” I said.

“Allow us to demonstrate,” said Yewell, and with a snap of his fingers we were again submerged in the blackness of the nebulous void. Read more »