For several years i have played on a semi-professional baseball team in New York. My team is composed mostly of strong and quick 20-somethings, while I am 32-years-old with cartilage problems in both shoulders. I also have a busy e professional life to manage. It's frustrating to try to keep pace with the younger guys who have more free time to stay sharp. But at least, that frustration has provided me with some insight.

Our younger players are impulsive. They are focused on hitting a home run or stretching a single into a double. When the coach asks them to sacrifice a runner over, they ignore it. When he asks them to take a first strike to make the pitcher work harder, they swing away. In our playoffs this year, I was asked to bunt, and while I love to swing away as much as anyone, I knew this was the proper strategy to help the team win.

Many older, seasoned advisors probably look around their offices at their younger colleagues and feel the same way. Likewise, in working with both young and seasoned advisors in my practice, I have recognized the subtle differences between their skills and attitudes. The markets and the economy are uncertain and clients are jittery. There are probably few individuals in your branch who can handle the pressure to perform under such difficult conditions. I hate to generalize, but advisors who can handle today's pressure are usually the ones who are about 50-years-old. In a pressure situation, whether it's a tough market or a tied baseball game, age can outweigh youth and beauty when it comes to survival.

I have sent younger advisors out to dinner with older ones so they can get some mentoring from those who have been around the block a few times. I often find the older advisors enjoy the admiration and are willing to share some of their wisdom.

A younger client of mine told me that he landed some solid-gold advice from an older advisor in his branch. Here is what he was told about how to get through treacherous times:

Don't Be Bullied by Your Clients. One of the challenges younger advisors face during a downturn is trying to bring in new business. When markets are bad, inexperienced advisors just want to maintain the status quo. They become afraid to lose business. For example, I had a younger advisor who was so afraid of losing a client that he allowed himself to be bullied into making an improper investment decision just to appease the client. When the client lost money, he blamed the advisor. The seasoned advisors I work with know that you cannot win in this situation. Be strong, confident and unbending, even in tough times. Your clients will respect you and not hold you responsible for an investment that you weren't comfortable with in the first place.

Be Positive Even When Others Aren't. Our markets are irrational, our banks are melting before our eyes, the housing market is bleak and bonuses will be few and far between this year. During times like this, seasoned advisors must maintain their composure for the purpose of keeping their frazzled clients on board. Even your colleagues can negatively affect your performance with their own bearish perceptions. Misery loves company, so it is wise to avoid the advisors who verbalize their feelings of despair and hopelessness and seek out those who remain upbeat, optimistic and calm during rough times. Seasoned advisors are able to look back on their long careers and recall tough markets and remember how they overcame them with persistence and strategies that offered solutions. Younger advisors haven't endured the rough patches to teach them how to weather these storms. Remaining level-headed and viewing these times as an opportunity for change is the number-one ingredient for a strong business.

Be Insulated. Many advisors complain that they can't sleep at night because of waning job security. Consequently, they struggle every day with the fear that they will never bring in new business or that their firms may implode.

Seasoned and mature advisors prepare early on in their careers for any of these scenarios. For example, many will practice what they preach with their own clients and have a diversified investment portfolio that is not dependent on their company's stock options. Others will gain peace of mind knowing that they have solid credentials like an MBA (or a psychology degree) if they ever need to make a career change. If you have tangible solutions to problems, you will be able to maintain control over your emotions when things at work become ambiguous or uncertain. These are scary times for all of us, but only those who are mentally prepared to handle adversity with confidence will survive. If you are new to the business, start preparing a life raft today for your own peace of mind. Before you do, however, talk to someone who has been through the flood.

Dr. Alden Cass,author of Bullish Thinking: The Advisor's Guide to Surviving and Thriving on Wall Street and The Bullish Thinking Guide for Managers, is the president/chief consultant of Catalyst Strategies Group. He is a New York-based psychologist who specializes in coaching Wall Street advisors and executives. For more info on Cass, email him at acass@catsg.com or visit www.catsg.com.