With chaos in the markets,I caught up with a few friends who have been in the business for decades. Like most others, they feel miserable and bewildered by recent events in our industry. However, oddly enough, their incomes are up. Could there be light at the end of this tunnel? I found their advice very valuable so I am sharing it with you.

Dave spent 12 years at Bear Stearns, now JPMorgan. Prior to that, he was at Merrill Lynch and trained at Lehman Brothers. Since at some point in his career he's been at most of the firms that have been in the headlines lately, he has an interesting perspective.

And Dave's business has never been better. "In my 25 years in the business, I've never had ex-clients calling me and asking me to take over their accounts again [until now]," he says. When it comes down to it, in times of turmoil clients want to feel that their money is safe. Since JPMorgan's government-aided acquisition of Bear Stearns, at least nine clients with family accounts have come back into his life.

Dave went on to say that it's important to give clients a realistic perspective. He tells them that December is going to be another pretty bad month, and everyone has to be prepared. "All my clients are aware and we will make the necessary adjustments. We will get through it together," he says.

Dave's clients believe he made the right move by staying at JPMorgan. "At first, they kept calling and asking if their money was safe. But now they tell me it was the best move because I could have jumped from one fire into another."Dave didn't load up on Bear Stearns stock like so many other advisors. When his incentives came due, they were diversified. Simply put, he actually followed his own advice and it has served him well. For others, most of their life savings are gone.

And then there is Leo. Leo started his career at Bear before most of today's advisors were even born. Along his career path, he also spent 15 years or so at Lehman, and is now at UBS. "The things I really like about getting older are my AARP card and giving advice to anyone who will listen," he quips. Leo had lunch with some colleagues recently and they agreed that in all the years they had been in the business, they had never seen anything like the past 12 months. "I have friends who spent their whole careers at one firm, and now everything is gone. They worked so hard, for nothing," he says.

Although this situation is too personal for most people to be a Monday morning quarterback, it's plain to see that Leo is in a better position today than most of his friends because he did change firms. "I didn't like the direction that the firm was going, and I didn't even take a deal to leave." Now his retirement is intact and so is his book. "This is still a wonderful opportunity and career for a young buck who wants to work hard. But you should always make sure you use independent judgment. That goes for your clients, as well as yourself and your family." Leo continued: "This may actually be the perfect time, if ever there was one, to go independent. It's really hard to justify to clients a decision to stay at a firm that can't even manage its own money. (On a personal note: Leo, if that's what you want, don't worry, I can help make it happen!)

Another friend of mine, a branch manager in New Jersey, says that you should "stay close to clients, but also don't forget; reach out to new ones." The advisors who become paralyzed by fear and lose focus will lose out, he says. "Make sure to hold hands through the crisis." This branch manager was out to dinner with a few friends recently, and one of them was complaining that he hadn't heard from his broker at another firm. My friend set up a meeting with a financial advisor in his office. This illustrates an important lesson: There is a tremendous opportunity for growth with the people who aren't being called.

Let's say roughly 20% of advisors aren't calling clients in a timely manner, or don't manage their expectations. Think of all those potential accounts out there that are desperate for a bit of attention. Makes you want to stop reading and hit the phones, doesn't it?