How he went from YouTube addict to studying 12 hours a day

📺 Watch my interview with Ruri Ohama:
• Meet the 22 year old w...
This week I interviewed @jvscholz who is particularly known for his daily live streams on @JamesScholz where he studied for 12 hours a day for over a year. We talk about his productivity routine, his thoughts on work motivation, discipline, meditation, favorite tech gadgets, and growing on KZbin. Check out the timestamps below if you'd like to skip around!
🫥 OUTLINE:
00:00 Who is James Scholz?
02:22 What James’ daily productivity routine looks like
05:10 What James’ is working towards currently
06:10 How James lives off of passive income
08:03 How he broke his KZbin addiction and learned to focus
10:23 Why boredom is the key to focus and how to be bored
11:18 Does using retro tech and a dumb phone help with focus?
12:55 How to use meditation to increase focus
14:17 How to be consistent with meditation and all habits
16:24 Why James uses a dumb phone (and which one he uses)
18:15 James’ favorite productivity tech
20:00 A useful journalling method
22:20 Favorite books
24:40 Is it possible to work without motivation?
25:40 What motivates him to work so hard
27:00 3 purchases under $100 to quickly improve your life
28:20 Why James has 3 KZbin channels
29:50 Why James wants less subscribers
31:31 How James defies all KZbin rules & advice
32:12 Advice for people who want to succeed on KZbin
34:47 How James monetizes his channel to live off passive income
36:45 Advice for those who want to achieve more in life
👇THINGS MENTIONED
📓 BOOKS
Almanack of Naval Ravikant: amzn.to/3VwjJe6
The Comfort Crisis: amzn.to/3TxHks6
Stoner by John Williams: amzn.to/3Vw0Ckn
📍 PRODUCTS/LINKS
Boox E-ink Tablets: shop.boox.com/collections/ein...
Teenage Engineering: teenage.engineering/
Life of Discipline: www.lifeofdiscipline.com
📺 WATCH NEXT:
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7 Purchases under $100 to quickly improve your life: • 7 Purchases Under $100...
5 habits that changed my life: • 5 habits that changed ...
The morning routine that changed my life: • The morning routine th...
🔗 LINKS
Instagram - / reysuing
Twitter - / reysuing
🪣 PRODUCTS (These are affiliate links)
Eight Sleep (Code "REYSU"): eight-sleep.ioym.net/REYSU
Levels Discount (2 Months Free): levels.link/REYSU
📙 KZbin Strategy Consulting (for entrepreneurs): calendly.com/reysu/youtube

[@reysu]

Hope you guys enjoyed the podcast! Sorry for that weird blur thing going on on my video. And I also made a typo on James' @ in the video lol, check the description for the right one.

[@nikitamoond3232]

His personality was so interesting that we didn't even focus on what blur thing u talking about .thanks for introducing him to me through ur channel .I'm really thankful.

[@Happypotato917]

Couldn’t you have used a better picture of James in your thumb nail? I’d be irritated if I were him😐

[@ErenDoppleganer]

I have soyjak party problem too

[@Sad_bumper_sticker.]

I subscribed, counted 60+ multiple unstoppable Ads in this video, so I unsubsribed. Disproportionate number of ads considering this channel is sub 100K.

[@sielsm3743]

i dont hear enough about youtube addiction, this is something that ive been struggling with for years. People seem to mostly talk about "social media" addiction but don't usually include youtube with that, but for me its still a problem.

[@reysu]

KZbin is one of those imo that actually can bring a ton of value but depends how you use it

[@kaerumez754]

If you watch on a videogame console, delete it. On browsers, i use unhook. Unhook removes the recomendations page and enables you to deactivate other pages aswell. For the phone, i recommend uninstalling it

[@lizziedeerest]

I have watched a lot of his recent videos, and I think he talked about how he got rid of devices that would allow him to watch youtube easily. He has a few older laptops, and one of them is for watching youtube and movies, if I remember correctly. But by not having an iPad and iPhone, he can't pull out KZbin whenever he feels like it. E-ink is black and white, so that makes people less inclined to be on social media. I would recommend putting your phone in grayscale mode to see if it helps!

[@kaerumez754]

I think my comment got deleted but here i am again. On phone and/or videogame console, just uninstall. On pc use Unhook, an extension that removes the recommended tab and enables you to hide other tabas aswell.

[@valeriaaraujo9962]

Fr. I use KZbin constantly in my studies but then I get distracted by the videos in my homepage and recommendations. Most of the time after I finish studying here I still stay on KZbin for hours watching and listening to random stuff.

[@hollowedboi5937]

Bro this guy was insane during covid, helped me to focus way back. He’s crazy to do it that long, but hell he really wanted to do good in his life. I can’t wait to watch this.

[@reysu]

hope you enjoyed it!

[@Ramen-ui3gh]

I don't really understand what to watch in those streams of him ??what's beneficial there how are you guys following a vid of some dude who's just minding his own business...I'm just so curious about it

[@Gabi-nn6xu]

@@Ramen-ui3gh people are doing their own stuff when watching his streams... is not that hard to connect the dots... they are literally titled study with me, you're supposed to be studying too.....

[@aligmal5031]

@@Ramen-ui3gh it's like ppl who play rain sound while studying stuff like that the study with me video encourage you more to study instead of doing something else it's like when you are in a library you tend to study like anybody else instead of distracting yourself with your phone ect

[@zzzmagical]

i watch James's streams since 2022 and it's ridiculously insane the way he did this all. Congrats.

[@reysu]

Crazy work ethic for sure

[@cyb3rr.]

Me too. His content helped me get better grades in college. Kudos to him :)

[@vaibhavkamade7915]

​@@cyb3rr.Same i used to watch him, woojin cho and heleen

[@engineergeek6678]

Please tell me his channel name

[@cyb3rr.]

@@engineergeek6678 jvscholz

[@s8x.]

love how he’s so nonchalant 😂 it’s like he’s tired 24/7

[@CooldownCentral]

james is a legend. he was a big inspiration of me getting out of my rut a few years back. it helps me to kinda look at him and see what he's up to in this point of his life considering we are just a few months apart in age.

[@reysu]

glad you found the vid helpful!!

[@Ramen-ui3gh]

What exactly did he help you in?? What benefits you got and how

[@aldirenaldi3363]

I'm 35 years old and when i lose my motivation to study, i watch james video. It help me a lot to bring back my will power.

[@JeffEmmersonSocialWork]

*Love, love, LOVE the authenticity, no bullshit and vulnerability here!*

[@reysu]

:)

[@wilxa]

here before this blows up . James has been an inspiration to so many people across so many different countries. Especially here in asia its really great to just have some motivation because studying 12 hours a day here is a must and feeling burnt out is common. He always helps me get out of my rut and start again

[@reysu]

Thank you for your comment! Glad the podcast was helpful to you

[@revisionconsistency]

Agreed!

[@userpgfkdnndjnnxn]

It's so rare nowadays to find people like James, he is truly a motivating figure for a lot of people, Students of all ages. I just want him to know that he is living a life and also making us live better every single day. :)

[@arthurmolmy39]

That was such a great conversation, mate. I get so amused to see so many people relate with each other about how to slow down and feel less scattered in their life. It's just great !

[@dakine4238]

Wow what a young kid and so wise. I hope he realizes and I'm sorry he didn't have a dad or a great upbringing. I can relate and sending lots of love

[@itsdlifestyle]

Love how James sticks to his principles even during tempting times and keeps helping others/retiring his mom top of mind as his motivations, pursuing evolution for the sake of others. Thank you Reysu for sharing this fire interview!🔥🤝

[@reysu]

Definitely inspiring. Glad you enjoyed it!

[@dmxp]

this interview was needed. thanks for interviewing the man, the myth, the legend jvscholz!

[@thetruetemptations]

I havent seen James in so long, i'm glad he's doing well. Great video, thank you!

[@studywithjames]

yoo it's amazing that you interviewed james Scholz, he is the reason why I changed a lot and started the "study with me" stream 3 years back and continuing on. Love the vid man!! btw you got james's @ wrong lol

[@reysu]

ayy thanks for watching and crap lol

[@AllThingsJapan-]

Love your videos Reysu, it's really fascinating to get a look behind unique approaches and channels, especially when most of KZbin paints the picture of things only working within a rather limited range of approaches. Also, really cool to hear his approach to and perspective on life, such an inspiring video!

[@D.R.O.P]

really cool that you put picture refrences on screen. thank you

[@varinda4800]

it's so cool that you interviewed him, for me I had literally lost hope that I could study, let alone for long hours, but I started to study longer hours because of him, I came across it on youtube one day and it flipped the switch in my life, I still do miss the streams but this was so good to watch

[@reysu]

you got this man. Let's get it 🤝

[@varinda4800]

@@reysuyessss♡♡♡

[@agnulman2161]

i love the fact that when he mentions something you show us what it is and provide a link to it so anyone can use it too thanks

[@reysu]

some of them were hard to find haha

[@jupitired777]

his streams during COVID were so helpful in getting my uni work done. it was awesome

[@tdjtomas]

James is a very good example of a simple, diligent man who works consistently and has clear goals!

[@nifeoyawa]

the metaphor about how your devices can impede you from doing good work or being a shelter really stuck with me. great video!

[@reysu]

glad you found it valuable too

[@nightshadow24]

I can't believe I see this guy again, cuz the last video I've seen posted from him is like from 2-3 years ago or smth. I thought he quit, glad he graduated and hope he's doing ok. Still subscribed to him, he was and still is an inspiration for me(I'm a student currently), so yeah. Even tho I commend his will to learn for so long each day, I can't do it honestly, i'm just getting bored. I don't have to do problems, I just have to learn some info(med school). I get sick of it. Can't wait to finish this.

[@reysu]

🤝

[@CMri]

What a cool person he is. All the best to him. Thank you for that interview.

[@ghostie7790]

I saw him a few years ago and was hooked instantly. I loved his cat who popped in the frame all the time too. I already have this level of discipline with my small business but seeing someone else do it it too helped me keep going. So excited for this interview!

[@rajgopalsahu]

I can't thank James enough for how much he helped me focus on my work during quarantine.

[@ashesh2420]

Great interview, thanks for uploading

[@ataegeli9441]

Hi Reysu, this video recently came up on my Recommended. I am glad to have clicked on this video. There is so much advice and general stuff in this video that James hasn't talked about on his channel. I really liked listening to you guys talk and I will definitely be using Life of Discipline for my habit tracker and I really liked the car metaphor James talked about, since i am a big fan of cars. Anyways, loved your video and your questions that you asked James were really good too :)

[@reysu]

thank you so much for watching :)

[@chamindyamudithani6484]

im happy to see u again james congradulations for ur graduation

[@wroester]

Amazing, big fan of James and his videos - mad respect for the guy. Great interview.

[@april-yz2ow]

He made me get into college, 3 moths of hard work

[@Nobodyishom3]

How are you doing now in college?

[@april-yz2ow]

@@Nobodyishom3 good i think, not the best grades but trying to get the best from every teacher and class

[@arpan9937]

James gave me immense motivation and also showed a path to me during covid when I was going towards a downhill of low productivity and you tube addiction. I was a high-schooler at that time, with me being from India, like every STEM guy I had to study for my JEE Mains and Advanced 2023 which did indeed needs the amount of hard work and focused concentration which I was only able to put as I would religiously follow his live streams everyday. Now I am in an INI(Institute of National Importance) and I would any day say that a big chunk for the success of me clearing the JEE exams were due to me getting inspired from James for which I have immense gratitude and respect towards him. It's great seeing him do well, I hope he achieves each of his endeavors. And I wish the same to you as well.

[@99csr]

Love the series bro. Excited to see future episodes

[@renskips]

heyyy great video with james, glad u made this video. rlly saved me ^^ keep up the good work!

[@reysu]

thanks for watching!!

[@katec9893]

As someone who was a teenager in the 90s this conversation is fascinating for me. My first phone was when I was in Sixth Form, it was what the youth today would call a dumb phone (which is surreal to me because it was mesmerising back then!). It took a few more years for phones to become mainstream, we all had Nokias that could call and text and that was about it. Then we all got bamboozled by smart phones, Facebook etc not realising its downsides. It's interesting how young people today are starting to see the reality of all of this tech and its negatives, and are in some ways returning to how we lived pre the 2000s. I am glad they see things clearly. Distraction is much harder to avoid today than back then. I have started to switch my phone off throughout the day to help me concentrate and get things done. Edit: My first phone was a Phillips Savvy from 1999 if anyone is interested in vintage tech!

[@lizziedeerest]

This interview is amazing. I wish I had an e-ink monitor for my work, because looking at Dell devices for 8 hours becomes so painful. It would be cool if James created his own dumbphone lol, or started a new phone company. One that didn't rely on kids to mine the materials I need to rewatch and take notes, especially for book recommendations. Amazing work

[@the_madridista9059]

Thank you, for this beautiful video✨

[@ChimwekeleOkoro]

Thank you so much for this video! Someone I would like to see in this series is multiversecurse. He has a really amazing violin, journal and exercise routine, and he reminds me a lot of James and Ruri!

[@reysu]

interesting! Never heard of him, will check it out

[@articleclub]

Great interview. James is great.

[@user-xd4be5ne2r]

Thanks man . thats a great topic ❤❤

[@jaysyoutubecorner]

James has been a big inspiration to me for 3, 4 years. Great video ^-^

[@daydreamhero1374]

this is really a great interview..so informative

[@hazel_04]

i was so curious abt how the movie went cuz james been working on it since 2022,didn't know it's still in process,and seems like it's a big deal.Tbh,i'm very impressed,keep up the good work !

[@reysu]

excited to hear more about it too

[@MrWilson-jd2et]

I didn't get a lot of clarity from this video. I was listening for how he got comfortable with being bored and how he keeps up studying for so long without burnout?

[@hunni2968]

Glad I saw this comment halfway through the vid

[@ViniuauCP]

I'd recommend watching his viral video "how I studied for 12 hours a day for over a year", he goes into all necessary detail in that video.

[@wyarn]

this is like a biography book but a video. very helpful, great content. thanks man

[@reysu]

thanks! this is what I'm trying to do with interview series to distill value :)

[@GoomusicLtd]

Love the interview, thanks for doing this :)

[@reysu]

glad you enjoyed it !

[@Zrxhonflake008]

The metaphro he jad for like the car and the driving is really helpfull Thanks man ❤

[@onstn4129]

Thank you for this wonderful video 💜James ❤ 🇹🇳🇹🇳🇹🇳🇹🇳

[@gokhantoksoy2826]

very good one ! thank you

[@MS-rz2uc]

This was great, thank you!

[@reysu]

Glad you enjoyed it!

[@platonymous]

Wow this is actually really inspiring I am also majoring in Computer Science but I want to pursue a career in acting. My jaw dropped when he said that because our situation is so rare.

[@LoRd-ml1vl]

I got myself in order on James's channel, which I discovered about 5 months ago, and I open each of his videos and work with him, take a break with him, I start at the same time and finish at the same time as him. I endure a trouble like the university exam and study, and after 40 days, this painful experience will end. .But I still believe that I will be a more hard-working, disciplined person for the rest of my life, thanks to the discipline you have given me. Now, I will leave this video and move on to the 9th part of the course.With love and respect to James Scholz from Türkiye.

[@betulcanli3034]

I love how humble he is

[@snigdhaanand5659]

great interview..kudos to both the interviewer and interviewee !!

[@reysu]

thank you for watching, will keep making more of these!

[@lorna_ovlov240]

He helped me so much during covid. He is the best person on youtube

[@reysu]

thanks for watching 🤜

[@screepy4823]

Long time i didnt see this guy and youtube recomendate me this video, nice to see him, in that time i always used to put his streamings in background while i was trying to become a professional poker player, i also read one book named "Deep work" that he recomends. Nowadays im very succesfull, im travelling around the world playing . He dont know me but i will be gratefully to him for that piece of motivation he give me in that moment.

[@bigusdcus]

A thought provoking interview

[@awrchival]

Love that man. He's a legend.

[@reysu]

absolutely

[@chilli8715]

excelent video, keep up the good work!

[@reysu]

Thank you very much!

[@bw9914]

Love your videos Reysu they help me a ton. I appreciate u.

[@reysu]

thank you, new video coming soon tmr :)

[@mparhar1639]

Alright this guy prioritizes the viewers more than his income for yt , totally an awesome guy

[@jaimelovera3341]

im so happy my youtube addiction brought me to this video.

[@JMons]

Great podcast, This guy is a legend , love his advice , he reminds me of L from death note a bit 😂

[@abdullahamir947]

fr

[@reysu]

He would be a legendary fit if he played L in a live action movie

[@CelaenaSardothien-zy9zd]

"She wasn't always there for me but I know she was fighting for me. She deserves the best" I really resonated with that. I have high respects for you man. Im just so proud of u. I've watched u since pandemic and you really helped me a lot. You inspire me so much!❤

[@mahata0]

I like this man a lot! He is my inspiration in life:)

[@PatChatGC]

Yoooo another banger interview, looking forward for more!

[@reysu]

thanks man!!

[@jhakkashakash3948]

Great questions!

[@reysu]

Appreciate it 🙏

[@kahnubaid]

This boy is definition of cool person.... Maturity level is 🔥

[@akimeru8899]

I love James!!

[@imwritingapoemaboutit]

such a special guy

[@HenG20]

Great interview!

[@reysu]

Thanks for listening 🤝

[@No_name12]

Legendary Combo!

[@reysu]

Yoo

[@jalock]

I made it to the end! Would love to see you interview yourself

[@reysu]

Ayyoo appreciate it dude. that’s an interesting idea.

[@ApeLikeBanana]

Can you tell me the song you used at the start of the video, I love it and want to know about it :)

[@beeztherapy]

nice to see a youtube i know do some q&a and sharing life changes

[@reysu]

awesome

[@JoelStudies]

Amazing video! 😄

[@reysu]

Glad you liked it!

[@patrickmclauchlan8467]

amazing content

[@MaybeIWillPutANameOneDay]

I don't think at all that he was bored or anything. His case was TOTALLY different. He himself adviced not to rely on temporary factors, like bursts of motivation, mood,etc. Instead he EMPHASIZED on drive. Drive was the factor for him.

[@afridajahan2004]

This is my sign❤

[@nilomilonilo]

awesome man, so grateful you uploaded this. when did you interview him? is this fairly recent?

[@reysu]

like literally last week

[@nilomilonilo]

@@reysu cool, thanks foryour reply!

[@noozhatwara2061]

For us muslims that small break meditation is actually 5 Daily prayers, it refuels our souls. I could resonate so well with this video ❤

[@reysu]

thank you for watching

[@lovley1389]

freak this was what i needed ....

[@reysu]

awesome!!

[@modtyrant1784]

I recommend getting a 2nd monitor or labtop and have it to the side, helps with youtube addiction.

[@_stefku_]

if they ever made a (quality) live action Death Note, James would be a perfect fit for the role of L

[@user-gl8lp8hw2k]

doing a CS degree and I honestly feel like it isn't even possible for me to "study" for 12 hours a day. or almost at all. I go to my classes, get back to my dorm, endlessly do the homework and projects I've been assigned, go to bed, repeat the next day. the only respite being when it's three days until the next midterm exam and they can't (in good conscience) assign any more homework and projects (not that it stops them depending on the class), or when I crash and do nothing for 1-2 days and realize I missed a class and am getting points deducted from my grade or have a million deadlines coming up and will have to eat a 70 on an assignment even if I work nonstop. the funniest part is that I'm not sure I'm actually making any progress. I'm doing what I'm told to and getting reasonably good evaluations, but at the end of the day I feel no different from before. graduates from this place seem to make a good amount of money though, so if nothing else I'll be able to feed myself and my family once I'm done, which sounds good to me I guess. I just wish the process didn't feel this soulless.

[@reysu]

I feel you bro. I graduated with a CS degree and there were periods near deadlines where I worked nonstop for 16-18 hours per day and only sleeping a couple of hours. A lot of times I'd spend 50+ hours on a coding assignment and make almost zero progress, or realize I have to re-do everything. You can do this, it'll be worth it 🤝

[@who-am-i69]

​@@reysu what after the cs degree

[@tokisuno]

james vladymir scholz back at it again

[@theteenagephilosopher]

12:00 great lesson / analogy

[@elizabeth4689]

Can’t believe you located the man the myth the legend himself

[@reysu]

🤜

[@Axekel_18]

Studying 12 hours using crt monitor is insane. It's not his study but actually his monitor that I'm hooked into his channel.

[@Avius_Corvus]

Bro looks like a real life L from Death Note.

[@user-zn4sr1ll1c]

well he definetly deduced the interviewer's career like L, this guy I can't😂 "sorry I assumed, are you like a developer?" "uh ya...."

[@leylo1161]

in Austria our graduation exam is called matura and it consists of 6 exams in total 3 of them take 5h each and he saved me!! through his streams I managed to focus and even graduate with honours!!

[@reysu]

wow!! that's amazing

[@rando_guy]

this is the last vid I'm gonna watch for a while now :D hope it works

[@reysu]

🤝

[@LeksDee]

used this guys videos to unlock a superpower that let me work on my thesis for 8-10 hrs a day which was unbelievable

[@ElevateBenefit]

what camera does he use, he mentioned a retro camera and showed a video, what camera is he using there.

[@drawin.kuties]

As a student who has been under a lot of stress, this interview has been really enlightening in seeking all these new things and actually getting interested in it .

[@JhonatanMMM]

great video

[@reysu]

Glad you enjoyed it!

[@s8x.]

love him. a diamond in the rough. me and him alike

[@MotivAustin]

Nice vid

[@thee_earl]

Pookie James ❤