Meet Adeel. He makes and breaks things in Shopify, BigCommerce, and other eCommerce platforms. In this installment of Behind The Code, we find out some of Adeel's family traditions, his journey to Computan, and why he's such a difficult guy to entertain.
Ok, Adeel – history time, and I'm not talking about your history. I am talking about your Internet history. What are the last three things you Googled and why?
Let's see. I Googled:
1 - Adeel Haider - my name…just because that's fun to do sometimes,
2 – Pir-e-Kamil (loosely translated from Urdu, one of 4 languages Adeel speaks (English, Punjabi, Urdu, and Persian) as 'Perfect Mentor'). My mom recommended it.
3 – Salman Asif – He's someone a friend of mine told me about who became a really financially wealthy person trading stocks! Googling him is the best way to keep up with his daily happenings.
What Was the Last Big Problem You Solved at Work?
One that really sticks out is customizing The Recharge Subscriptions App in Shopify for one of our clients. The subscription widget from Recharge wasn't showing on the Collection Page products. Then it also wasn't changing prices based on variants selected by the end-user. After a while, my mind went off. So I took a break, came back to the problem with some fresh eyes, and resolved the issue. Another day at the office!
'Who are three people you'd like to have dinner with at the same time, and why?"
This is a tough question. I'd like to have dinner with my mom, dad and a friend from University that I haven't spoken to in a long time. We were friends throughout University, but then afterward, we have never really talked. I told my parents a lot about this friend, but they never got a chance to meet. It would be great to just sit and catch up.
When was the last time you cried tears of laughter?
Seriously, I don't remember any time where I cried tears of laughter. I can't remember crying tears of sadness too much either, which is lucky. I probably cried when I was a kid when my parents gave me a lecture for bad grades or bad habits! Usual kid stuff.
What do you love about coding?
Honestly, I don't really love coding. It's a great exercise for the mind, I enjoy doing it, and it's part of my profession, but it's not something I can't live without either. To me, coding is art. It's a way for me to take something in my brain and give life to it. Honestly, I didn't really have an interest in coding for a long time.
Really, what changed?
Well, I wanted to buy something personal with my own money. I studied programming in school… not because I really wanted to but because it was my fall-back position. I really wanted to be a commercial airline pilot instead. Due to circumstances beyond my control, I couldn't be a pilot, so then I got into coding. I took an internship away from home, then got my first job doing work in BigCommerce and Shopify, and haven't looked back.
Tell me about your first computer.
I first got a computer at home in 2002. It was a great machine – Windows NT and 98 days. I loved gaming – Virtua Cop 2 comes to mind. I had the time of my life playing Sega PC games at that time – Tekken 3, Robocop, Spiderman.
What Is Something Your Teammates Don't Know About You?
I don't know! I don't really watch a lot of TV or movies. It's strange…I don't get entertained by things most people get entertained by for some reason. Most people my age don't listen to the music I listen to (Sufi music…inspired by Persian poets like Rumi). I draw a lot and those drawing are in my Paternal Grandfather's house. I really enjoy cooking, which is something I don't think my teammates know.
You cook!?
Yeah! I cook a lot. My favorite thing to cook is Sindhi Biryani (Southeast Asian meat and spiced rice dish). One family tradition we have is that on holidays or special occasions the men in the family cook all the meals and the women get to relax and chill out. Each man in the family cooks a special dish. Mine is Sindhi Biryani.
Biryani is a really common dish, and it seems everyone has a secret ingredient. What's your secret ingredient?
I don't have a secret ingredient or anything. We just use ingredients at home. Fresh vegetables and spices. It's not so much the ingredients but what you do with them that makes the difference! I also sketch a lot.
What kind of sketches do you do?
Nothing serious. Just pencil sketching. I keep them in my paternal grandfather's house. Here is a picture of one of my latest:
