Chicken Lips, Wheeler-Dealer, and the Beady-Eyed M.B.A

One man's worldwide entrepreneurial adventure...and how to follow in his footsteps

Part memoir, part practical guide for any budding entrepreneur, Chicken Lips, Wheeler-Dealer and the Beady-Eyed M.B.A. is the story of how one man abandoned a cushy publishing job in Manhattan to pursue his dream of working for himself. Spanning eleven years, the book tells the sometimes moving, sometimes funny, and always inspiring story of Frank Farwell, who rediscovered a forgotten product from China and cashed in on a readily defined American market niche. A fascinating look at the transitional years of modern China, the book is packed with helpful information for anyone keen to leave well-paid tedium for the Wild West of self-employment.

As the interest in self-employment rises, Chicken Lips, Wheeler-Dealer, and the Beady-Eyed M.B.A. fills an important niche. Covering the successes and failures that mark the path of the committed entrepreneur, the book entertains and instructs using concrete, real-life examples that clearly illustrate the dos and don'ts of running your own business.

• A non-fiction look at the world of self-employment that uses a real-life story to illustrate successes and pitfalls
• Includes a 'Lessons Learned' appendix that succinctly explain the most important takeaways for starting your own business
• A compelling insight into entrepreneurship that spans continents

The story of a tenderfoot company and its neophyte boss who maneuvers his way in and out of trouble to ultimately build a business that is still thriving today, Chicken Lips, Wheeler-Dealer, and the Beady-Eyed M.B.A. is a fascinating, informative look at entrepreneurship in the twenty-first century.

Frank Farwell worked as a cub newspaper reporter for the Claremont, New Hampshire, Daily Eagle, and Vermont's Windsor Chronicle, then enrolled in Northwestern University's M.B.A. program. After two semesters he took a summer job at Times-Mirror Magazines in New York and stayed on to become managing editor of Ski magazine, and then staff editor at Ziff-Davis' Yachting. Four years later, tired of publishing's modest pay scale, he quit gainful employment to found a tiny company in his attic. His staff- and freelance-written articles have appeared in The New York Times, Signature, Ski, Backpacker, Yachts and Yachting (U.K.), AOPA Pilot, IFR, The Guide to Cross Country Skiing, Ski Business, Harrowsmith, Kiplinger's Changing Times, The Kazi (Japan), Cross Country Skier, Outdoor Life, Marathon World, Nordic World, and In Business. He has been a commercial- and instrument-rated pilot with 2,000 hours flight time, and in his 50's raced canoe and cross-country ski events throughout the Midwest and eastern Canada. He has three children and lives in the northern Great Lakes region. This is his first book.