Gigging/Freelance isn't that easy in the UK, lots of pitfalls in running a company (we have IR35 and a government that thinks we are all tax dodgers) and then you have "gaps" between clients known as bench time which can last from a few weeks for over a year. I had last four months of 2017 on the bench, not easy. One plus was watching my kids grow up and I did pass my MCSA/MCSE certs but the finances took a huge hit.

Still, I wouldn't swap it for a permy/career job anytime soon.

Edit: After 18 years I still love messing around with that infernal RDBMS we know as MS SQL Server. :crazy:😀

qh