He had the title, the salary and the right CV. Then Rasmus Bartholomæussen decided to leave it all behind
He had senior roles at Vestas and Lyngsoe on his CV. A highway of opportunities to continue for the next 20 years. And then a nagging feeling that life could be used in a more meaningful way. That is why Rasmus Bartholomæussen resigned from his good job and founded an NGO that develops schools in Cambodia.
By Caroline Bundgaard
cb@dnmh.dk
AARS: “My wife called it a midlife crisis,” he says with a teasing smile.
His friends simply thought he had lost his mind.
But Rasmus Bartholomæussen has never wavered in his decision to leave the corporate world, the salary package and the summer house in Lønstrup.
“To begin with, I thought I just needed to change jobs to rediscover my motivation,” he says of his final years at the wind turbine manufacturer Vestas.
But a series of short employments reveals that Rasmus Bartholomæussen was searching in vain for new meaning and motivation.
He only found it when he swapped the wind industry for helping some of the world’s poorest people.
“That sounds like something I’d like to do too,” people in his network would say when he called around and told them about it.
That was until the conversation turned to money, prestige and all the comforts.
Completely indifferent
“I have also been driven by titles and constantly chasing the next thing,” Rasmus Bartholomæussen quickly adds.
But in his mid-40s, he had the feeling that he had achieved what he could, with the abilities he had.
“So the question is how long you want to live with the enormous pressure that exists in a company like Vestas. Where you constantly have to live up to targets, evaluations and your own expectations.”
There was no dramatic turning point. No sick leave or sudden revelation.
Just a nagging feeling that life — and his skills — could be used in a more meaningful way.
It was a guest presentation about work in an NGO that made the idea begin to take root in Rasmus Bartholomæussen.
He was standing in the summer house in Lønstrup when he called the founder and offered his help as a volunteer.
And when he changed jobs again shortly afterwards, he negotiated a four-day working week. Every Friday would be spent raising money to build schools.
The first time he helped open a school in Turkey, something changed.
Rasmus Bartholomæussen returned home to Denmark. He told his boss that he would stay for the rest of 2024. And then he would found his own NGO.
“Some people may have thought I had gone crazy. But I am completely indifferent to what others think. I have never been so proud of anything in my entire life.”
The natural next step
Rasmus Bartholomæussen has travelled to 80 countries with either a backpack or a briefcase.
But he completely fell in love with Cambodia when he travelled there in 2010 with Lyngsoe Systems.
From his villa back home in Aars, it therefore felt obvious to help Cambodia’s poorest families.
It may seem like a break with everything he has ever worked with. But Rasmus Bartholomæussen sees his NGO as the natural next step.
It is the same skills from the wind industry that he now draws on when raising money to develop schools:
30 years of experience in sales and business development. A large network. And the ability to bring together the right people who can make things happen.
“None of this is cold canvassing,” he says.
In the first phase, the NGO Bamboos is primarily aimed at companies, foundations and wealthy private individuals, all of whom he would like to speak to.
“That is why I am deeply dependent on networks that can say: this is a great project. I can vouch for it. You should have a chat with Rasmus.”
He has also had to unlearn some of the sales mentality that brought him to the top at Vestas and Lyngsoe Systems.
Back then, Rasmus Bartholomæussen never left a meeting without having something to hold the other party accountable for. A next step in the sales process.
But no one wants to have a school costing DKK 700,000 pushed down their throat.
“I can present the opportunity, show our progress and tell the good stories on LinkedIn. But it has definitely been a learning experience for me that I should not be selling.”
The napkin in the summer house
And then there is the small matter of finances.
Rasmus Bartholomæussen has not borrowed a single krone from the bank for his NGO.
Every donation goes directly and in full to the projects. He pays his 10 employees in Cambodia, but has to find his own salary elsewhere.
That is why he is working to find 10 companies — so-called founding partners — that, through an annual contribution, can cover operations, salaries and the trips to Cambodia.
Until then, he is using his savings.
“Or our savings, as my wife reminds me.”
Rasmus Bartholomæussen calls his wife his greatest support. But initially also the project’s biggest opponent.
“She works in banking,” he says, letting the words hang in the air.
“She thrives on calm and stability. And we have been used to me having a good and stable income. So it is no secret that this project has required some conversations.”
When the money quickly began disappearing last summer, the couple wrote down on a napkin exactly how much the NGO would be allowed to eat into their savings.
They decided to sell the summer house in Lønstrup. Not out of necessity, but to adapt to the new reality.
And it has always been the plan that Rasmus Bartholomæussen should begin receiving a salary within two years.
“We will achieve that too. We have received a great deal of trust and many sponsorships, so now it is the point of no return. That also means that people around me are beginning to relax.”
Rasmus Bartholomæussen still works 60 hours a week. But when his salary begins to come in, it will be at a much more modest level than before.
“I could have chosen to earn DKK 100,000 a month in a job like this. I have been aware of that all along. So it has never been in financial terms that I measure my return.”
The planned gross salary of DKK 40,000 has been set based on what is considered reasonable.
And although the family depends on the income, Rasmus Bartholomæussen emphasises that they will not lack anything.
“That is why I would rather transform my privileges into opportunities for those who need them most.”
Fact box: Briefly about the NGO Bamboos
- Rasmus Bartholomæussen founded Bamboos in January 2025.
- The NGO is currently working on three school construction projects, two teaching programmes, seven libraries and a number of smaller projects in Cambodia.
- Bamboos started independently and used the local NGO Kamboo Project as its implementation partner.
- On 1 January 2026, it took over Kamboo Project’s entire activities in Cambodia because the founder saw an opportunity for more structure and scaling.
- In connection with this, Bamboos took over eight employees in Cambodia, a number that has since grown to ten.
- The NGO continues the work with 33 schools and 50,000 children.
- Young Danish volunteers also contribute to the work.
Fact box: Three important considerations according to Rasmus Bartholomæussen
- Be honest with yourself about how deep your passion really is. Passion, drive and perseverance are crucial when your life is going to be lived in a markedly different way — also financially.
- Know yourself in relation to how much other people’s opinions matter. Moving away from a good title and a high salary will make others raise their eyebrows. Are you ready to withstand that pressure?
- Remember that it is all on you. Moving from being a salaried employee to being self-employed gives enormous freedom. But also endless challenges and long days.
Fact box: Briefly about Rasmus Bartholomæussen
- 51 years old and lives in Aars with his wife and two teenage children.
- He has 30 years of experience in sales and business development, with senior roles at companies including Lyngsoe Systems, Vestas and Copenhagen Offshore Partners.
- In January 2025, he founded the NGO Bamboos, which develops schools in Cambodia.