[oalders]

Which can be problematic if some of your 9 years have been spent with the company where you are currently employed.

[kybernetyk]

Or you have run your own business or have been a self-employed freelancer.

Proving experience without employment contracts is really hard to impossible.

[rdancer]

If you've been self-employed, you'll have had tons of paperwork, tax returns, invoices, clients to obtain references from, and possibly could get to a prospective employer through your personal network. The key is to plan ahead.