# The School of Hard Knocks

> The School of Hard Knocks is an Austin-based business media company founded in 2021 by James Dumoulin, Jack Dumoulin and Joshua Smith. It publishes entrepreneur interviews and monetizes its audience and production expertise through advertising, brand partnerships, content services, coaching and the School of Mentors subscription community.

- **Founded:** 2021
- **Headquarters:** Austin, United States
- **Founders:** James Dumoulin (Co-founder and interviewer), Jack Dumoulin (Co-founder), Joshua Smith (Co-founder)
- **Products:** School of Hard Knocks media channels, School of Mentors, SOHK Agency, School of Content
- **Notable:** Co-founded in 2021 by James Dumoulin, Jack Dumoulin and Joshua Smith., Fox News Radio reported more than one billion views and four million social followers in April 2024., Launched School of Mentors on June 4, 2024, according to the founders’ newsletter.

## Products & services

- **School of Hard Knocks media channels** — Free short-form entrepreneur interviews, longer YouTube videos and podcast conversations.
- **School of Mentors** — Subscription Skool community with weekly live mentor calls, networking and more than 100 hours of exclusive content. Launched June 4, 2024; the public page showed about 5,300 members and a promotional $19/month on the research date.
- **SOHK Agency** — Short-form video strategy, scripting, filming, editing, posting and account management for businesses and personal brands.
- **School of Content** — Content coaching offer covering short-form and long-form strategy, live calls and a course. Its public Skool group is free; applications point to a separate program.

## Achievements

- Co-founded in 2021 by James Dumoulin, Jack Dumoulin and Joshua Smith.
- Fox News Radio reported more than one billion views and four million social followers in April 2024.
- Launched School of Mentors on June 4, 2024, according to the founders’ newsletter.
- July 2026 Inc. coverage cited 26 million followers across platforms.
- School of Mentors listed roughly 5,300 members when reviewed in October 2026.

## Latest updates

- **2026-10** — Company LinkedIn posts sought a host for a planned technology and AI business channel; the listing describes a channel in development, not a completed launch.
- **2026-10** — The School of Mentors public page showed about 5,300 members and a promotional $19 monthly subscription.
- **2026-07** — Dumoulin discussed the company’s interview production and revenue diversification in Behind the Brand and associated Inc. coverage.

## Links

- Website: https://www.skool.com/schoolofmentors/about
- LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/the-school-of-hard-knocks-llc
- Twitter/X: https://twitter.com/hardknocksedu
- YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@theschoolofhardknocks
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/theschoolofhardknockz/
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/theschoolofhardknockz/
- TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@theschoolofhardknocks

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Profile page: https://yespress.io/the-school-of-hard-knocks
Published by YesPress — https://yespress.io
Last updated: 2026-10-16