Forward Obsessed

About Forward Obsessed

Get into the minds of breakthrough business leaders and entrepreneurs to explore their unique stories and ideas for the future. From devastating pitfalls to life-changing aha moments, hosts and serial entrepreneurs themselves Pete Sena and David Salinas push interviews past the surface for an in-depth, insightful glimpse at the future of business and brands. Take your seat at the table to hear guests recount their failures, re-live their midnight planning sessions, share their hopes & passions, and explain what’s next for their business, industry, and the world. Subscribe now and join us in becoming Forward Obsessed, and be sure to watch all the full video episodes on Youtube.

Publisher

Pete Sena and David Salinas

Category

business

Language

en

Explicit

No

First episode

22 Mar 2022

Latest episode

29 Jan 2026

Latest episodes

2 of 65 episodes have a transcript.

1. 

   29 Jan 2026TRANSCRIPT

   Melissa Cash: Designing Pok Pok & the Digital Playroom Revolution // 65

   Melissa Cash isn’t just reshaping children’s screen time—she’s redefining the future of learning and creativity. In this deeply insightful episode, Melissa, the co-founder and CEO of Pok Pok, shares how her own childhood learning struggles inspired a lifelong pursuit to create playful, purposeful, and non-addictive digital experiences for kids. From her early days at Disney designing for one of the world’s most beloved brands to raising a $3 million seed round while nine months pregnant, Melissa's story is one of vision, grit, and mission-driven leadership.Pete and Melissa dive deep into topics like the psychology of screen time, the balance between play and learning, and how thoughtful design can nurture a child’s imagination instead of draining it. You’ll also hear how Pok Pok is turning heads in tech by intentionally avoiding addictive features, and why the company is betting on creativity over clicks. This conversation is a must-listen for entrepreneurs, parents, and anyone curious about building a business that puts human development at the center.🔎 Find Out More About Melissa Cashhttps://www.linkedin.com/in/melissacash/https://www.playpokpok.comhttps://www.instagram.com/playpokpok/📚 Chapters00:00 - Introduction to Melissa Cash01:28 - The Childhood Moment That Shaped Her Learning Philosophy06:26 - From Arts High School to Designing Baby Products at Disney09:05 - What Disney Taught Her About Brand, Play, and Creativity14:00 - Why Pok Pok Rejects Addictive Design for Kids21:46 - The Unlikely Origin Story of Pok Pok25:58 - Defining the Digital Playroom36:03 - Fundraising While Nine Months Pregnant44:16 - Getting Women on the Cap Table: The Hard Road46:18 - Reinventing Company Culture with Black Box Day57:00 - The 10-Year Vision for Pok Pok🔗 Other Links & Resources:The Power of Play by David Elkind - https://a.co/d/hwrjIhhThe Courage to Be Disliked - https://www.amazon.com/dp/1501197274Throne of Glass series by Sarah J. Maas - https://www.amazon.com/dp/1619630346🔴 Support & ConnectForward Obsessed Website: www.forwardobsessed.comInstagram: https://www.instagram.com/forwardobsessed/TikTok: https://www.instagram.com/forwardobsessed/LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/showcase/forward-obsessed/#founderstory #femaleentrepreneur #pokpok

2. 

   25 Sept 2025TRANSCRIPT

   Katelyn Bourgoin: Why Buyer Psychology Is the Real Growth Hack // 64

   Host Pete Sena interviews Katelyn Bourgoin, founder of Why We Buy, about overcoming startup failure to master buyer psychology and build a seven-figure media company.

3. 

   3 Apr 2025

   Tanay Kothari: Building the Next Generation of Personal AI // #63

   Host Pete interviews Tanay Kothari, CEO and co-founder of Wispr Flow, about building the next generation of personal AI and the entrepreneurial journey behind voice technology.

Inside a recent episode

Melissa Cash: Designing Pok Pok & the Digital Playroom Revolution // 65

Published 29 Jan 2026 · Transcript excerpt

[…] Like, every kid is so different and reacts to everything differently. So I think it's really about knowing what is good for your kid and what defines good. And then also thinking about things like, what serves my family best? So for example, if it's just Tuesday evening and you have to cook dinner and you have three kids under the age of six and maybe your partner is not there. You're a single parent. It's either like you cook a really wonderful, healthy balanced meal while they spend 30 minutes on screen or you get McDonald's on the way home and they don't have any screen time at all. And you have to decide like what might be the most helpful thing in that moment for you. […]

Who has been a guest on Forward Obsessed

Names identified in recent episode analyses. Showing up to five guests.

• Katelyn Bourgoin
• Tanay Kothari
• Sean Busch
• Mike Lloyd
• Anthony Ng Monica

Reach and audience

Public platform figures. Ratings count people who left a rating, not total listeners.

YouTube views

497,634,521

Score snapshot 15 Sept 2025

Apple Podcasts (US)

5.0 / 5

11 ratings

Spotify

4.9 / 5

14 ratings

Podcast Authority Score: 76 / 100

A composite of feed quality, social presence, YouTube performance and engagement. Read the methodology.

Quality

64

Social presence

94

YouTube

93

Engagement

82

Contact Forward Obsessed

Guest appearances

Books guests

Based on episode analysis; this does not confirm that the show is currently accepting guests.

Questions about Forward Obsessed