#62

Today I have had an article writing day, with some 2900 words added to the manuscript while finishing (and then submitting) my book chapter "Ecosemiotic questions: Towards a comprehensive description of the complexity and creativity of life". This brings the number of writing days this Spring up to 62 including 35,5 article writing days.

This was the most productive writing day this Spring in terms of words written (not coincidentally, today was also my longest workday this Spring - before my summer vacation which starts tomorrow). Altogether I logged 15.864 words written in June, over 18,5 writing days (the most any month this Spring). This Spring I logged a total of 29.942 words written, which is more than any Spring since 2019 except 2020 and 2025.

Summing up the work year 2025

I have just summed up my work year in 2025 based on my log of working hours. 2025 was my second shortest work year in living memory (with my work log going back to 2009), with an average work week of 46,2 hours all weeks in the year included. This amounts to 2409 work hours, which compares to 143% of an ordinary work year. 

This year I also summed up my work/life balance, focused on sleeplessness, karate training and meditation.

Overall, the work year was characterized by making room for finishing the manuscript for my book originally titled Captured: CCS and the fight for the soul of the environmental movement and now titled Carbon Capture and the Future of Environmentalism. I so did, in early August 2025. In my work log, this is reflected in the fact that book projects had the highest share of total work on record, and ended up as the largest category of work for the first time. Moreover, the share of my work time I spent on research plus book projects was the highest ever. Book projects was also the category whose share of all work hours increased the most from 2024. 

See also:

Summing up the work year 2022

2024: Shortest work year in living memory, at "only" 138% of normal work year

2024: Shortest work year in living memory, at "only" 138% of normal work year

I have just summed up my work year in 2024 based on my log of working hours. 2024 stands out as the shortest work year in living memory (with my work log going back to 2009), with an average work week of 44,7 hours all weeks in the year included. This amounts to 2335,5 work hours, which compares to 138% of an ordinary work year. I worked 180 hours less than in 2023, which was at that point my shortest work year in living memory. This has contributed to a better work/life balance, with more time for karate training and relaxation; since the summer of 2024 I have also taken up daily meditation. And I still got quite a bit done in my working hours - though I got to attend fewer international scientific conferences in person than I´ve been used to, due to budget cuts at University of Stavanger.

Even though it went down from 2023, the share of my work time I spent on research in 2024 was the second-highest in living memory (after 2023). Similarly, the share of my work time I spent on research plus book projects was the second-highest ever, after 2023. Research was the largest category in terms of work hours in 30 weeks, vs. 17 for teaching, supervision and grading etc., and 6 for book projects. Book projects was the category whose share of all work hours increased the most from 2023, in result of my prioritisation of getting Captured: CCS and the fight for the soul of the environmental movement finished by Summer 2025.

Summing up 2021 in terms of work hours

In 2021, I logged 3.114 work hours. This compares to an average work week of 59,7 work hours (holidays included).  This is my third-longest work week ever, beaten only by 2011 (when I finished my ph.d.) and 2012 (my first year as an associate professor and about the time up until I became a father), and compares to 184,5% of a normal work week.

Other highlights: As expected, the category "UIS" increased the most and reached record levels, while research and book projects had a significant decline. Also the broad category "academic" reached a record level, at the cost of literary projects and "other tasks".

Summary of work year 2019

In 2019 I ligged 3.073,5 work hours, which is 186% of the normal work year in Norway. My work week was on average 58,9 hours, up 2 hours from 2018 and up 4 hours from 2017. This is my longest average work week since 2012, and in other words my longest work week/year since I became a father.

About 31% of this time was spent on research, down 3% from 2017. Work with book-long texts was stable. UIS work (primarily as Vice-Dean of Research) was largest category, with 32% (+9%). I spent less time than ever on "other tasks" (4%); 77% on academic work; 19% on literary projects.

Work hours logged in 2018

In 2018 I logged some 2955,5 work hours. This results in a weekly all-year average of 56,7 hours - the most since 2012 (when I became a father). 

The most significant repriorization concerned quitting elected positions in the Green Party of Norway, bringing time spent on research back to normal, and spending more time on book projects than ever before in the time covered (starting with 2009) - namely 20% of my work hours. I have also spent slightly more time on my role as Editor-in-Chief of Biosemiotics, after I took over as Main EiC this last summer.

The work year 2017 summarized

In 2017 I worked for some 2.863 hours, resulting in a weekly average of 54,9 hours. This is about 1.213 hours more than a normal work year, or 1,735 times as much. 

Last year I worked relatively less with what I characterize as academic work, and slightly more with both book projects and "other work" (including a lot of time spent doing voluntary work for the Norwegian Green Party). 

This had a negative impact on my work hours spent on research, with the lowest percentage post-2011 - but "research" nevertheless narrowly ended up as the biggest single work category, yet again. While Green Party work and time spent on book projects had record highs, the categories for my Philosophy business Spør filosofen, music, administration and "writer" (besides research and book projects) had record lows. 

Work hours 2016

Yesterday I looked over my logged work hours in 2016. Altogether I worked for 2.901 hours, which amounts to an average work week of 55,5 hours (vs. 54,6 hours in 2015). Of this 64,9% was spent on academic work (vs. 75% in 2015), 14,1% on book projects etc. (vs. 8,5% in 2015) and 21% on "other" activities (vs. 16,5% in 2015). Among activities that contributed to more spent time doing "other" activities were the Green Party, administrative work (for one thing because we bought a house and moved), and music-making.

Work hour log

In my personal work hour log, I have just transitioned from 2nd to 3rd tertial 2016. In 2nd tertial 2016 I logged 883 work hours (vs. 962,5 work hours in 1st tertial). Average work week so far in 2016 is 53,6 hours.

2848 work hours logged in 2015

According to my regular overview, I had 2.848 work hours in 2015. This is about the same level as in 2014, and results in an average work week of 54,6 hours throughout the year.

According to my calculations, academic work amounted to 75,0 % of my work in 2015, book projects and writing for 8,5 % and other work for 16,5 %.

The work year 2012 summarised

In 2012 I worked some 3165,5 hours. This results in an average work week (all weeks included) of 60,5 hours (against 62,0 in 2011 and 58,1 in 2010), which represents approximately 192 % of a normal work week (given 35 hours per week, minus 5 weeks of holidays).

I worked more than ever (since records begin in 2009) at the University of Stavanger (where I have in previous years only graded papers), with book projects (categorised as 'Litterært' and including both co-editing and monographs in process), and  with Minding Animals and to some extent the Nordic Association for Semiotic Studies.

The share of my work time spent doing research is a bit tricky to estimate; the category "Research" stood for 28,1% of all work hours, though this does not represent all research activities and is at any rate not directly comparable to previous work 2009-2011 categorised as "doctoral work" (which included work beyond research as well).

New rules for my work week

Last weekend I decided to change my rules of engagements workwise. In recent months my rules have been that I work six days a week, with Saturday or Sunday off, and aim at working until 6 pm on work days. My average work week so far in 2012 stands at about 63 hours. The new rules imply that I will have BOTH Saturday and Sunday off regularly (unless I am on a work trip), and that I will on weekdays aim at working either 8-18 or 9-19 or 10-20.

My motivation for these changes? A feeling of being overworked for the last three weeks in a row; a coming child, the worries of friends and family (My name is Morten Tønnessen, and I am a workaholic).

Assignments for the University of Agder later this spring

This week I was asked to do a variety of things for the University of Agder's Department of Religion, Philosophy and History (where I have previously taught one and a half course, in 2009 and 2010 respectively). I have agreed to be an examiner at this spring's Examen Philosophicum, with responsibility for grading around 90 exam papers (home exam - which thus amounts to 180 work hours formally). This will take place in the weeks after May 21st. I might also be formally asked to be a second examiner at an oral exam in early May (7th, if I am to do the job), but this remains to be agreed. Same subject. On the other side I had to decline the request to teach Examen Philosophicum (more specifically ethics) at Lesbos, the Greek island, since the dates (in late June, early july) collide with other obligations. A pity, since I have been waiting for that call for some 3 years, and have really wanted to teach on Lesbos (the island where I in September 2005 realised that I have two tasks in life, one of which is being a scholar).

At any rate these assignments will bring my aggregate official work percentage up from 63% to 70% or so this year (though I work twice as much, all things considered and with voluntary side projects included).

New work rules

While I revised my doctoral work this weekend with regard to what to submit as PhD dissertation, I also reworked my work habits.

As the two next figures show, I have worked long work weeks since 2009 (the last diagram displays the work hours so far in 2011 week by week).

The trouble with such long work weeks is, for one thing, that one risks blurring the difference between work and free time, if work is omnipotent. After having pressured myself lately, I have now introduced two new principles so as to self-disciplinize myself (and become a better husband):
1) At least one full day without work (as in duty) each week!
2) As a rule no work after 6 pm!

2010: Work hours; readings

Being the number-prone nerd that I am, I regularly count (and classify) my work hours, and what I read in an academic context.

Work hours
While a normal Norwegian work year is approximately 1650 hours, I worked 2833 hours in 2009 (172%) and a record 3029 hours in 2010 (184% - + 196 hours). In 2010, I classified 67,8% of these work hours as 'Academic work', 12,6% as 'Writing' and 19,7% as 'Other work' , which includes my attempts to commercialize my competence as a philosopher (I will spare you for the details - finer categories).

Readings
I took note of reading 8.918 pages in 2009, and 9,392 pages in 2010 (+474), altogether 18.310 pages 2009-10. Readings in the second half of 2010 represented 275 authors ('written by') and 240 thinkers ('written about'). Top ten for the latter:

1. Aristotle
2. Plato
3. Trotskij
4. Augustine
5. Jakob von Uexküll
6. Socrates
7. Kalevi Kull
8. Marx
9. Husserl
10. John Deely