𝐇𝐨𝐰 𝐈 𝐁𝐞𝐜𝐚𝐦𝐞 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐇𝐚𝐦𝐛𝐮𝐫𝐠𝐞𝐫 𝐆𝐢𝐫𝐥: 𝐌𝐲 𝐀𝐰𝐤𝐰𝐚𝐫𝐝 𝐅𝐢𝐫𝐬𝐭 𝐃𝐚𝐲𝐬 𝐢𝐧 𝐃𝐞𝐧𝐦𝐚𝐫𝐤 is my first essay on @Substack.

Are you looking for a Danish company that actively promotes internationals, sometimes over Danes, and presents them in prestige settings at the top of their field? There’s at least one national company that does so, although you will need some special skills: the Royal Danish Ballet. Out of 24 listed principals and soloists, there are 17 non-Danish dancers. On a recent trip to Gamle Scene in Copenhagen, we were presented with two short Balanchine ballets plus some more recent choreography, starring a fully diverse cast of dance professionals. Soloist Ji Min Hong (South Korea) was featured in the newer ballet alongside principal dancers Silvia Selvini (Italy) and Jón Axel Fransson (Iceland). Corps dancers Jimmy Coleman (Canada), Tomoko Kawazoe (Japan), Hannaë Miquel (France), and Joseph Aumeer (Black British) were also onstage. Of course, the Royal Danish Ballet currently has a non-Danish director, the American Amy Watson, originally from California. She joined the company as a dancer in 2000. ----------- An interesting fact about the Royal Ballet is that it has a mandatory “retirement” age of 40, or at least retirement from active classical dancing roles. You can continue in less physically demanding character parts, like the evil witch Madge in 𝘓𝘢 𝘚𝘺𝘭𝘱𝘩𝘪𝘥𝘦 or the mysterious toymaker Drosselmeyer in 𝘛𝘩𝘦 𝘕𝘶𝘵𝘤𝘳𝘢𝘤𝘬𝘦𝘳, but your jumping and pirouetting days are over when your 40th birthday candles are blown out. The idea is to create turnover and opportunities for younger dancers, as well ask protecting older dancers from performing beyond their physical peak. It also protects company leadership from having to have "that conversation" with a dancer who can't accept that they are aging out. Many athletes in popular sports - hello, Novak! - could benefit from this type of system.

Happy Grundlovsdag! Danes will argue that "Constitution Day!" isn't a national holiday, exactly, but it's the closest we get to it. Unlike Swedes and Norwegians, Danes don't walk around in traditional folk outfits on their big day. A few speeches and a trip to the summer house.

Friday June 5 is 𝘎𝘳𝘶𝘯𝘥𝘭𝘰𝘷𝘴𝘥𝘢𝘨, or Constitution Day, the closest Denmark gets to a national day. But there are none of the colorful parades, fireworks, or military fly-bys that characterize national days in some countries. And unlike Swedes and Norwegians, Danes don't dress up in traditional folk costumes on their big day. In fact, I'd never seen one of these outfits until I came across photos from Solvang, California, where Danish heritage traditions are celebrated more visibly than they are in Denmark itself! Most Danes will just enjoy the day off, and perhaps take a trip to their summer house, where they will raise a very large Danish flag. If you'd like to do something special to mark the day, visit Rosenborg Castle in Copenhagen and see the actual pen King Frederik VII used to sign Denmark's first democratic constitution on June 5, 1849. --------- I write more about Constitution Day and many other Danish traditions in my new book, 𝐓𝐡𝐞 𝐃𝐚𝐧𝐢𝐬𝐡 𝐘𝐞𝐚𝐫: 𝐓𝐰𝐞𝐥𝐯𝐞 𝐌𝐨𝐧𝐭𝐡𝐬 𝐨𝐟 𝐂𝐮𝐬𝐭𝐨𝐦𝐬, 𝐐𝐮𝐢𝐫𝐤𝐬, 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐑𝐡𝐲𝐭𝐡𝐦𝐬 𝐨𝐟 𝐄𝐯𝐞𝐫𝐲𝐝𝐚𝐲 𝐋𝐢𝐟𝐞 𝐢𝐧 𝐃𝐞𝐧𝐦𝐚𝐫𝐤. If you enjoy learning about Danish culture and customs, or if you like my free How to Live in Denmark podcast, I think you'll enjoy the book too. 📷

OK, this is Danish transparency: The local cops announce exactly which streets will be the focus of traffic enforcement operations in the week ahead. If you're dumb enough to *still* speed on those particular streets, you deserve to get caught.

Do holidays like Grundlovsdag just seem to creep up on you? When I first moved to Denmark, I remember being constantly surprised by unexpected holidays and traditions, including some (like Blue Monday and the motorcycle procession opening Bakke each year) that aren’t on any calendar. That’s why I wrote “The Danish Year: Twelve Months of Customs, Quirks, and Rhythms of Everyday Life in Denmark, only Dk 35 on Amazon Kindle. That’s less than the cost of a flat white! ☕️ You can read it on any smartphone or tablet with the Amazon Kindle app. You’ll read about: ⛷️ January, and why ski holidays are a good indication of income inequality 😻February, and how the “cat in the barrel” shows the decline of traditional religious faith 💌March, and how the decline of “gækkebrev” is a loss for romance in Denmark 🪏 April, and why Danes care more about gardening than many foreigners 🕯️May, and what it means to put a candle in the window on May 4 ⚔️ June, and the “defense day” military screening that is required for all Danish boys – and, as of 2026, of Danish girls as well 🌼July, and why “the Daisy Route” is a great way to discover parts of Denmark you ordinarily would not see 📚August, the first day of school, and why early education is an important part of making kids ‘Danish’ 🤾‍♀️ September, the opening of handball season, and why elite sports are exempt from The Jante Law 🗳️October, often election season, and why you’ll often see Danish candidates putting up posters with their own face on them ☔️November rain, and why Denmark is tearing up its streets to prepare for the flooding caused by climate change 🧑🏼‍🎄December, and why Christmas nisser. are a clue to the way Denmark sees itself Check it out, and if you like it, please leave a review on Amazon or on Goodreads! 😀

Sebastian på 18 år flytter nå til Sverige for å bygge selskapet sitt. Jeg møtte han i desember og la ut om hvor bra det er at unge tør å satse her i Norge. Siden da har selskapet hans blitt verdsatt til 100M. Men nå stikker han til Stockholm. I Oslo ble han sett rart på for å bygge selskap i så ung alder, mens der er det helt normalt. Han sier rett ut at Norge ikke er bygget for unge gründere, og at Sverige har høyere talenttetthet, bedre tilgang på tidlig kapital og høyere ambisjoner. Da jeg postet om ham på TikTok i fjor fikk han også mye hat. Han er en 17-åring som følger drømmen om å bygge selskap, og kommentarfeltet kom etter ham. Det er ikke sånn det skal være. Denne fyren kommer til å bygge enorme verdier fremover. De er allerede 30 ansatte og verdsatt til 100 millioner. Disse arbeidsplassene, selskapene og skattepengene går nå til Sverige istedenfor. Vi snakker mye om at Norge trenger flere gründere som tør å tenke stort. Men da må vi også gjøre det attraktivt å satse herfra. Norge burde egentlig ha et sjukt bra utgangspunkt: vi har høy tillit, gode ordninger og et sikkerhetsnett som gjør det mindre brutalt å feile. Det burde vært en fordel for unge som vil ta risiko tidlig. Men trygghet alene bygger ikke vekstselskaper. Det må kombineres med kapital, talentmiljøer og insentiver som gjør det naturlig å skalere fra Norge. Har vi ikke det, vil vi fortsette å miste folk som Sebastian. Heier på deg Seb, håper du får det til stort!🇸🇪

The Museum of Industry in Horsens, Denmark is always lots of fun.

Looks like a price of DK35 is the sweet 🍭 spot for eBook downloads - 𝐓𝐡𝐞 𝐃𝐚𝐧𝐢𝐬𝐡 𝐘𝐞𝐚𝐫 is selling well - so I've dropped the prices on all my other eBook downloads to just DK35, exclusively on Amazon Kindle. That's just $5, EUR 5, or GBP 4. 💰 That means you can download all these books for just Dk35 apiece: 📕 𝐇𝐨𝐰 𝐭𝐨 𝐋𝐢𝐯𝐞 𝐢𝐧 𝐃𝐞𝐧𝐦𝐚𝐫𝐤, 𝘈 𝘩𝘶𝘮𝘰𝘳𝘰𝘶𝘴 𝘨𝘶𝘪𝘥𝘦 𝘧𝘰𝘳 𝘧𝘰𝘳𝘦𝘪𝘨𝘯𝘦𝘳𝘴 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘪𝘳 𝘋𝘢𝘯𝘪𝘴𝘩 𝘧𝘳𝘪𝘦𝘯𝘥𝘴 📙 𝐇𝐨𝐰 𝐭𝐨 𝐖𝐨𝐫𝐤 𝐢𝐧 𝐃𝐞𝐧𝐦𝐚𝐫𝐤, 𝘛𝘪𝘱𝘴 𝘧𝘰𝘳 𝘧𝘪𝘯𝘥𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘢 𝘫𝘰𝘣, 𝘴𝘶𝘤𝘤𝘦𝘦𝘥𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘢𝘵 𝘸𝘰𝘳𝘬, 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘶𝘯𝘥𝘦𝘳𝘴𝘵𝘢𝘯𝘥𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘺𝘰𝘶𝘳 𝘋𝘢𝘯𝘪𝘴𝘩 𝘣𝘰𝘴𝘴 📘 𝐖𝐨𝐫𝐤𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐰𝐢𝐭𝐡 𝐃𝐚𝐧𝐞𝐬, 𝐓𝐢𝐩𝐬 𝐟𝐨𝐫 𝐀𝐦𝐞𝐫𝐢𝐜𝐚𝐧𝐬: 𝘈𝘯 𝘦𝘯𝘵𝘦𝘳𝘵𝘢𝘪𝘯𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘨𝘶𝘪𝘥𝘦 𝘵𝘰 𝘤𝘳𝘰𝘴𝘴-𝘤𝘶𝘭𝘵𝘶𝘳𝘢𝘭 𝘤𝘰-𝘰𝘱𝘦𝘳𝘢𝘵𝘪𝘰𝘯 📕 𝐖𝐨𝐫𝐤𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐰𝐢𝐭𝐡 𝐀𝐦𝐞𝐫𝐢𝐜𝐚𝐧𝐬, 𝐓𝐢𝐩𝐬 𝐟𝐨𝐫 𝐃𝐚𝐧𝐞𝐬: 𝘈𝘯 𝘦𝘯𝘵𝘦𝘳𝘵𝘢𝘪𝘯𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘨𝘶𝘪𝘥𝘦 𝘵𝘰 𝘤𝘳𝘰𝘴𝘴-𝘤𝘶𝘭𝘵𝘶𝘳𝘢𝘭 𝘤𝘰-𝘰𝘱𝘦𝘳𝘢𝘵𝘪𝘰𝘯 📘 𝐓𝐨𝐩 35 𝐌𝐢𝐬𝐭𝐚𝐤𝐞𝐬 𝐃𝐚𝐧𝐞𝐬 𝐌𝐚𝐤𝐞 𝐢𝐧 𝐄𝐧𝐠𝐥𝐢𝐬𝐡, 𝘈 𝘍𝘶𝘯 𝘎𝘶𝘪𝘥𝘦 𝘵𝘰 𝘚𝘮𝘢𝘭𝘭 𝘉𝘶𝘵 𝘚𝘪𝘨𝘯𝘪𝘧𝘪𝘤𝘢𝘯𝘵 𝘌𝘳𝘳𝘰𝘳𝘴 And, of course, my newest book 📙 𝐓𝐡𝐞 𝐃𝐚𝐧𝐢𝐬𝐡 𝐘𝐞𝐚𝐫: 𝘛𝘸𝘦𝘭𝘷𝘦 𝘔𝘰𝘯𝘵𝘩𝘴 𝘰𝘧 𝘊𝘶𝘴𝘵𝘰𝘮𝘴, 𝘘𝘶𝘪𝘳𝘬𝘴, 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘙𝘩𝘺𝘵𝘩𝘮𝘴 𝘰𝘧 𝘌𝘷𝘦𝘳𝘺𝘥𝘢𝘺 𝘓𝘪𝘧𝘦 All for less than the price of a flat white! ☕️ You can read your eBook on any phone or tablet using the Amazon Kindle app.

Denmark has plenty of holidays that aren't on any calendar, and one of them takes place tomorrow, or on any other Monday in April and May. It’s “Blue Monday”, where teenagers who have been confirmed the week before skip school and take the money they receive from their parents, relatives, and family friends out on a daylong shopping binge. Retailers love this, of course, in particular those that sell electronics, gaming equipment, makeup, or trendy clothes. But so do criminals, unfortunately. The Danish police have issued guidelines suggesting that the young shoppers (Danes get confirmed at age 13 or 14) hold their cash in a secure place, watch out for pickpockets, and not withdraw cash from ATMs for anyone else. ------- The Danish holidays that aren’t on any calendar is the topic of my short new book, 𝐓𝐡𝐞 𝐃𝐚𝐧𝐢𝐬𝐡 𝐘𝐞𝐚𝐫: 𝐓𝐰𝐞𝐥𝐯𝐞 𝐌𝐨𝐧𝐭𝐡𝐬 𝐨𝐟 𝐂𝐮𝐬𝐭𝐨𝐦𝐬, 𝐐𝐮𝐢𝐫𝐤𝐬, 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐑𝐡𝐲𝐭𝐡𝐦𝐬 𝐨𝐟 𝐄𝐯𝐞𝐫𝐲𝐝𝐚𝐲 𝐋𝐢𝐟𝐞 𝐢𝐧 𝐃𝐞𝐧𝐦𝐚𝐫𝐤, only Dk 35 on Amazon Kindle. You’ll read about: ⛷️ January, and why ski holidays are a good indication of income inequality 😻 February, and how the “cat in the barrel” shows the decline of traditional religious faith 💌 March, and how the decline of “gækkebrev” is a loss for romance in Denmark 🪏 April, and why Danes care more about gardening than many foreigners do 🕯️ May, and what it means to put a candle in the window on May 4 ⚔️ June, and the “defense day” military screening that is required for all Danish boys – and, as of 2026, of Danish girls as well 🌼 July, and why “the Daisy Route” is a great way to discover parts of Denmark you ordinarily would not see 📚 August, the first day of school, and why early education is an important part of making kids ‘Danish’ 🤾‍♀️ September, the opening of handball season, and why elite sports are exempt from the Jante Laws 🗳️ October, often election season, and why you’ll often see Danish candidates putting up posters with their own faces on them ☔️ November rain, and why Denmark is tearing up its streets to prepare for the flooding caused by climate change 🧑🏼‍🎄 December, and why Christmas nisser are a clue to the way Denmark sees itself Check it out, and if you like it, please leave a review on Amazon or on Goodreads! 😀 You can read it on any smartphone or tablet with the Amazon Kindle app.

This is very Danish. Danes are uncomfortable with someone sitting alone. Anyway, glad this guy found some friends.

Just a reminder that I'm available as a Copenhagen-based keynote speaker for international business groups, conferences, incentive travel, and MICE events visiting Denmark. I deliver humorous, insightful presentations on Danish culture, working life, and what makes Danes so happy. Educational and entertaining.