After nearly six years of uninterrupted gains, the last 12 months or so have been marked by bouts of hyper volatility that have shaken stocks across the globe. This is due to a variety of factors, including, among other things, renewed doubts about global growth, an uneven recovery in the United States, lower commodity prices, the specter of dislocation in the European Union and lingering low interest rates that have pushed yields in some countries into negative territory.

This clouded macro picture has sparked a renewed sense of unease among many retail investors, who to a very large extent are still haunted by the portfolio-ravaging specter of the financial crisis of 2008-2009.

For financial advisors, this presents a complicated picture, because when clients feel this way they almost invariably want "crystal ball" answers about the future that are nearly impossible to provide.  As a result, advisors across the industry are largely playing defense, fiercely protecting their existing client relationships while more aggressive efforts to acquire new clients are increasingly sidelined.

Interestingly, current demographic trends should be favorable for financial advisors right now: Retiring baby boomers, longing for income in a yield-starved landscape, need sound, professional advice more than ever. Advisors, therefore, should think of the current uneasiness as an opportunity to take bold steps that not only grow and strengthen their practices but also differentiate themselves from the rest of the pack.

To do this, advisors must first address what’s driving their clients’ fears. Yes, the wounds of the financial crisis are hard to forget. Yes, the current environment seems fraught with ambiguity. But there will always be some level of uncertainty in the world. Baby boomer investors especially have lost sight of this fact, most likely because the1990s and early 2000s were unusually stable from a geopolitical and macroeconomic perspective. They forget that those relatively happy times were a historical aberration, not the norm.

From there, the financial advisor should recast the conversation, focusing on what investors typically can control—their own personal financial plan. A good way to drill this message home is to present two choices. They can worry about Europe, the price of oil or a range of other uncontrollable economic data points. Or, instead, they can emphasize the fundamental issues that are both more manageable and ultimately determine whether their financial plan is headed in the right direction.

So consider this a call to get back to basics. This is a time to be direct with clients. Tell them to focus on what they can control and take the opportunity now to carefully walk them through a complete re-examination of their financial plan. Consider asking the following top four questions:

1.    Are your cash flow needs still the same? Cash flow needs tend to evolve over time. Unexpected medical costs pop up or, with tuitions continuing to spike, a client could decide to step in and fund their grandchild’s college education. On the other hand, it’s also possible that cash flow needs could diminish more than previously anticipated, potentially giving client’s the opportunity to focus on more growth-oriented strategies in the near future. Regardless of each individual's unique needs, at the end of the day, cash flow is what gives many clients security in times of turbulence. An advisor who has worked together with their clients on cash flow planning will have an upper hand on long-term planning

2.    Are you still on track for retirement? By having a plan for retirement, advisors are often able to calm clients’ emotions during times of volatility.  When storm clouds emerge, many investors with an eye on retirement seek shelter from the storm by choosing to exit their investments abruptly. Guiding clients with behavioral finance decisions is an important part of an advisor’s role with clients. While tempting to make short-term moves, these could affect their cash flow during retirement or possibly their ability to retire on time. Indeed, being able to withstand the inherent ups and downs of the market is one of the principal reasons to craft a financial plan in the first place. By revisiting the plan when anxieties are high, the advisor can more readily show his or her clients how it makes no sense to abandon the plan's approach when near-term trouble begins to brew.

3.    Is your plan still tax-savvy? Life is dynamic and tax strategies that have been implemented in the past may not be appropriate this year. Now is the perfect time to suggest a review of your client’s 2016 tax plan. The current fluctuations in the market may allow for the opportunity to rebalance portfolios with a lessened tax impact for non-qualified accounts. In addition, when working with clients who have income that fluctuates from year to year, you may have an opportunity to review Roth conversion as a way to benefit their retirement strategy. 

4.      Are you allocated properly?  Over the last year, many advisors have been having tough conversations about capital market performance. The U.S. market has been relatively flat, and international equities have continued to underperform domestic equities. On the fixed income side, yields have moved lower, providing positive returns but implying lower returns moving forward. This market has many clients asking about their overall allocation. This is a perfect time for a financial advisor to reach out to clients and re-evaluate their risk profile and time frame to make sure clients' investment assets are properly allocated. Many clients may need to be re-educated on capital markets and how asset allocation works over the long term.

With the proliferation of new technology-based retail investment solutions, notably robo-advisors, the need to contextualize and manage client expectations is potentially more important now than ever before. Certain clients may not understand that robo-advisors and other digital solutions became more commonplace over the last five years, when the markets were both rising and fairly predictable—and that those times have now vanished.

Today, investors need the wisdom and skill of a seasoned human advisor with the intuitive ability to make adjustments on the fly and to guide them through all market environments, functions that robo-solutions have not been able to achieve.  Financial technology does not have the ability to have human interaction, and astute advisors can use times of financial turmoil to solidify the relationship they have with their existing clients while building new ones.

Warren Buffett famously said, “Be fearful when others are greedy and greedy when others are fearful.” He was talking about investing, but he could just as easily been referring to financial advisors and their businesses.

Don’t be scared when uncertainty settles in. While making sure all investors have a sound, tailored and goals-based financial plan capable of weathering all seasons should hardly be considered bold, given the outlook of many advisors today, this approach is indeed unique. And by taking this approach, advisors will position themselves for success now and in the future.

Chad Smith is wealth management strategist at HD Vest Financial Services, the Irving, Texas-based financial services firm.