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2025-10-25 Alex Baydar - Chicago Client Victory, Faith in Business, and Entrepreneurship Lessons

Context​

Date: October 25, 2025 Participants: Gary Sheng, Alex Baydar Location: Virtual call (Alex returning from Chicago trip) Duration: Approximately 1 hour

Overview​

A pivotal conversation capturing Alex's transformative business victory in Chicago, Gary's spiritual journey and career transition, and profound discussions about integrating faith with entrepreneurship. The conversation showcases Alex's technical mastery with legacy building systems, the role of divine providence in business success, and strategic insights about scaling through hiring.

Part 1: Chicago Client Crisis & Resolution​

The Emergency Call​

Alex received an urgent email while overseas in Spain and Turkey with subject line "need help asap":

Client's Message:

"Do you have a backup of Star 12 [controller name]? It's in the building five mezzanine. We have total issues with the Star. Everything is in manual and we can't communicate with it even directly with a laptop. If we change the main board and get you communication, can you rebuild it?"

Client's Follow-up:

"That would be awesome. We are slammed here. Could use as much help as possible. We have a couple of issues aside from the Star."

The Technical Challenge​

  • Legacy System: Controller installed in the 1980s, over 40 years old
  • Technology: Low-pressure steam controls (not installed since early 1990s)
  • Stakes: Building's critical systems at risk
  • Competition: Siemens contractor waiting to push expensive emergency upgrade
  • Initial Doubt: Former boss explicitly advised against taking the project: "My recommendation is you should probably not take this account, not take this project. This is not a good idea."

Alex's Approach & Mindset​

On Maintaining Client Relationships:

"You gotta create your own opportunities, and you also have to maintain your opportunities, and you also have to constantly be monitoring your opportunities... I just felt like I neglected the account a little bit too much."

On the Pressure:

"I was presented as the expert, the specialist who's coming in to help them. And I had to deliver with their observation over my shoulder while I'm in the moment... they're questioning why you're doing certain things."

The Six-Hour Solution Process​

  1. Building Safety Checkpoints: Created test bench to avoid damaging working systems
  2. Multiple Backup Plans: Firmware compatibility issues required creative solutions
  3. Risk Escalation: "I was taking on a little bit more risk every time I did it"
  4. Final Decision: "I'm just gonna go ahead and implement what I think is gonna fix this thing. And if it breaks, I'll have to deal with it when it breaks."

The Victory & Impact​

Technical Achievement:

  • Restored 90% functionality within two days
  • Made system remotely accessible via internet (unprecedented for 1980s hardware)
  • Saved client from unplanned, out-of-budget emergency upgrade
  • Prevented competitor from capitalizing on crisis

Competitor's Reaction: Siemens contractor, shocked: "You got them fixed? In two days?"

Alex's Reflection:

"This is why you paid me to come out here. You literally hired me to do this job when it breaks, and that's what I'm here for."

Divine Providence in the Solution​

Alex's Recognition of God's Role:

"I saw the message that I needed to see... inside one of the panels, there was a command that I completely forgot about... I was like, light bulb boom."

Prayer of Gratitude:

"Thank you, God, for this wonderful experience that you put me through. And you equipped me with the knowledge and skills to help these clients... I could not have done it without your guidance and your help."

Part 2: Business Philosophy & Scaling Challenges​

The Gold Mine Metaphor​

Alex's powerful visualization of missed opportunities:

"It felt like going to a gold mine that you just discovered. And showing up to the gold mine with a backpack... filling up my backpack. And then as you're turning around, you see five people show up with 18 wheelers and they're loading up the 18 wheelers with gold, and I'm like, what the hell? I just have a backpack."

Hiring Fears & Risk Aversion​

The Core Challenge:

  • Fear Source: "Just fear. Fear of it going away or going to a crash and halt"
  • Previous Burns: Failed attempts with interns and temporary hires
  • Young Employee Misunderstanding: Temporary hire thought it was trial period, got "heartbroken"

Self-Reflection:

"I question, why do I doubt myself? That self confidence is really important. But I think it only comes from putting yourself in these positions where you're challenging yourself."

The 100-Day Launch Plan​

Alex commits to transformation:

"I'm giving myself 100 days to really launch the business into its next phase... I got to go balls to the wall. I really got to take this thing, take the training wheels off."

Industry Dynamics & Market Opportunity​

The Perverse Incentive Structure:

  • Other contractors benefit from condemning old systems
  • Alex extends system life, creating tension but also dependency
  • Siemens needs Alex's expertise with legacy systems while competing for upgrades

Alex on Market Reality:

"There's not enough time and there's not enough skilled labor out there to attack it all... There's so much opportunity out there."

Specialized Knowledge as Moat​

On Unique Expertise:

"It's such a weird thing that you can't train for that... It's so weird. Like who's going to give that class to teach someone that stuff? It's a very niche and specialty kind of work that allows me to ask whatever I want."

Gary's Comparison: "It's like knowing COBOL."

Part 3: Gary's Spiritual Journey & Career Pivot​

Three-Month Sabbatical Structure​

  • Duration: Three months off work post-Alpha Schools
  • Focus: Bible reading, spiritual deepening
  • Divine Connection: Connected with healing pastor in small Texas town
  • Witnessed Miracles: "I've seen cancer tumors go away in 10 seconds"

The "Dual Mission" Philosophy​

Gary's Synthesis:

"If you have the skills God gave you to make money in technology, business, whatever, you should probably leverage those skills in the marketplace and then use it to fund your own church stuff or donate to churches and mission trips."

Breaking the Pastor-Only Mindset:

"Christians have a big misunderstanding that full commitment means being a pastor. I don't think that has to be the case."

Career Direction & Opportunities​

Current Applications:

  • Developer relations roles (technical + community building)
  • Polymarket opportunity through brother's introduction to CEO
  • Rome AI conference with Pope Francis audience (November 6)
  • Consulting opportunities in crypto space

The "Wealth of the Wicked" Principle: Gary explains biblical concept: "The wicked have money that we're supposed to dig out and seize through business activity."

Example: Pump.fun founder having crisis of conscience, reaching out for guidance

Part 4: Risk, Randomness, and Faith in Business​

Alex on Gambling & Moral Complexity​

The Burden of Influence:

"When I was in college, I used to play a lot of poker, and I got somebody hooked on poker... I just felt so guilty for it... did I seduce them into something wrong?"

On Gray Areas:

"Instead of getting involved in the gray area and finding out where's the gray area start and stop, I just put it to the side altogether... if I can't figure out where it's right and wrong, I'm probably already too much in the wrong."

Nassim Taleb's Influence​

Alex recently finished "Fooled by Randomness":

  • Distinction between professions determined by randomness vs. skill
  • Traders' track records as meaningless in random professions
  • Dentistry as example of skill-based profession

Application to Entrepreneurship:

"I got scared for a little bit... I'm not fully adopting the risky aspect of it as much as I should. And that's what's forcing me to seek out that previous pattern of behavior."

Part 5: The Strategic Journal Concept​

Gary's Business Documentation Proposal​

The Problem:

"The curse of entrepreneurs: they're so busy actually working on it that they're never thinking about the process."

The Solution - "Startup Bible":

  • Document experiences and principles
  • Create playbooks for future employees
  • Extract principles from specific experiences
  • Build institutional knowledge

Gary's Vision:

"Create the startup bible for your own startup... continually sharing principles that you want to be embodied by all your new hires."

Documenting the Chicago Experience​

Gary encourages Alex to capture:

  • How he felt approaching the campus
  • Social dynamics with competing contractor
  • Technical problem-solving process
  • Moments of divine intervention
  • Extracted principles for future challenges

Key Themes & Insights​

1. Faith as Competitive Advantage​

Both participants recognize divine providence in business success, viewing faith not as separate from business but as integral to breakthrough moments.

2. The Employee-to-Entrepreneur Mindset Shift​

Alex articulates the fundamental difference:

"When you're an employee, you're always just trying to satisfy your responsibility. When you're a business owner... you have to pursue the opportunity and expand the opportunity and grow the opportunity."

3. Technical Mastery in Dying Industries​

The conversation reveals how expertise in legacy systems creates unique value propositions and pricing power.

4. Risk Calibration in Growth​

Both discuss the delicate balance between prudent risk management and growth-limiting fear.

5. Documentation as Leadership Tool​

The emphasis on creating "startup bibles" and documenting principles shows sophisticated understanding of organizational knowledge transfer.

Action Items & Commitments​

Alex's Commitments:​

  1. 100-day business transformation plan
  2. Overcome hiring fears and scale operations
  3. Document Chicago experience and extract principles
  4. Continue building on client relationship momentum

Gary's Next Steps:​

  1. Continue job applications in developer relations
  2. Rome conference attendance (November 6)
  3. Explore Polymarket opportunity
  4. Develop business documentation service concept

Notable Quotes​

On Divine Timing: Gary: "If you're in a pinch and you have a good relationship with God, then He may bail you out. He will bail you out."

On Business Relationships: Alex: "Wealth is all about deal structure. It's finding the right people to make deals with, and then the right structure with that deal."

On Testing Yourself: Alex: "You have to be willing to test yourself. You can't just do it in the comfort of your office or your home. You have to be out there."

On Emotions as Feedback: Alex: "It's such an emotional life that we live. And those emotions are not bad. Those emotions actually are great feedback."

Conclusion​

This conversation captures a pivotal moment for both participants. Alex's Chicago victory validates his business model while highlighting the need for scaling. Gary's spiritual journey informs a nuanced approach to re-entering the workforce with divine purpose. Their mutual support and strategic thinking demonstrate the power of faith-informed entrepreneurship and the value of documenting transformative business experiences for future growth.