Thomas Ranese is VP of global marketing at Uber. The rideshare brand has leaned into food delivery during the pandemic, and its "Delete Uber" campaign this summer urged racists to stop using the app.

Ranese is also an avid traveler, though traveling with him doesn't always turn out as planned. On this episode of the "Ad Block" podcast, he talks about how a lack of planning can sometimes blow up in your face, at least until you figure out how to make the best of it.

From landing in Paris without hotel reservations to showing up at a restaurant a week early, Ranese has had his share of close calls. "Instead of freezing up, it's like, holy shit, we can go anywhere for dinner tonight. We can just order in, and we can order from anything we want," he says. "We could stay in a hotel that I've never thought about staying in, or frankly, we can spend a lot more money on a hotel that I would otherwise spend on it because we have an excuse now and that sounds kind of fun."

Ranese also weighs in on the wisdom he'd like to bring back from the mountaintop and how to avoid running into walls at work.