I own my own IT consulting business. I love what I do, because I support a very wide range of businesses. It is interesting to see what others do and to be able to help them with the IT needs.
I'd recommend it AFTER you pay your dues! Go to school and get a degree in computer science or engineering. No paper mill to get you a certification is an acceptable substitute. Then, get real world experience before you go out on your own. If "location, location, location" is the mantra for real estate, it should be "experience, experience, experience" for IT consultants. The only way you can walk into a client and appear professional and capable, is the right mix of education and experience.
I would recomend the computer architecture career path. I would choose this career if I had another opportunity.
The nice thing about computer architects is that the pager/cell phone doesn't go off at 2:00am generally.
Personally, I get to work at home and be with family. I do have to travel occasionally but its very infrequent (less than 1 day a month).
The downside is that you tend to do a lot of drawings and don't get to play with the hardare very often. It can be frustrating for people who are used to to being in a data center or labratory.
Being a Systems Enginer is challenging and rewarding for the right person. To suceed in this feild you need to stay on top of all the latest techologies. Continuing education is a must.
Choose this career only if you really like dealing with computer and machines. You need a really strong theoretic base to keep up with the pace of technology evolution.
It is a kind of career where you have the oppportunity to always challenge yourself with new problems and issues and when you finally find a solution it is a really great satisfaction.
If I had to, I would definitely choose to go into this career again.