Now that most of the bloodletting from the Great Recession of 2008 is over (hopefully), you can expect your clients to begin returning to the marketplace. Surprisingly, that may well create major problems for you.

In addition to the normal issues such as understanding client investment objectives, matching them with realistic investment alternatives, managing financial plans and educating clients; now you will have to confront an unknown: investors' changed attitudes toward risk tolerance as a result of having lived through the Great Recession.

The industry saw a similar phenomenon after the Great Depression in the 1930s, when there was so much mistrust of banks and investment firms that people literally hid money under their mattresses. Afterward, the clients who had lived through the years between 1929 and 1940 were the most resistant to changes in their portfolios—even if those steps were extremely conservative.

As investors begin to come out of their shells, we don't know what to expect from them. That means we have to be especially alert to their emotions and their decision-making. My guess is that they will fall into a few general categories: those who reflect a Depression-era apprehension toward investing; those who continue as before; and those who attempt to make up for lost ground as quickly as possible. This last group will be your greatest challenge.

They may be younger investors who want to get back on track as fast as possible, middle-aged clients who still have short-term goals or seniors who fear their retirement may be delayed unless they can rebuild quickly. As a result, they might make less logical investment decisions and, if they fail in their investment goals, place the blame on you, their advisor. So, it is critical for you to spot those clients who were inclined to ignore risk before the recession and spend more time now managing their expectations. If necessary, you may have to fire them before they hurt themselves on your watch.

The process will take extraordinary patience. But if not done right, you could end up in numerous, time-consuming arbitrations.

If we can learn from history, we should expect the process to be more challenging when it comes to product selection.

Questionable investments seem to surface—whether it is taking advantage of tax credits or making up lost ground in bear markets. Many investors may try to balance their losses, at least temporarily, through term life insurance. But, they should be told to buy from only the highest-rated firms that back their policies, even though the cost might be higher. And when cash is tight, as it is now, that can be a difficult sell.

The Obama administration is placing emphasis on alternative energy sources, and we can soon expect to see a number of companies filing initial public offerings and seeking tax credits. Looking further down the road, there likely will be deceptive programs out there beckoning investors with returns that look too good to be true. Advisors and their firms must be on the lookout, steering their clients clear of these schemes.

If we focus now on clients' emotions, and anticipate investment lures that may crop up in the coming months, we should be able to help our customers, and keep ourselves out of costly arbitration disputes. The last thing advisors want to do now is fail to heed history and, as a result, leave their practices and their clients unprotected and vulnerable.

Larry Silver,former director of marketing at Raymond James Financial, writes about investment firm practices from Oldsmar, Fla. He can be reached at lsilvermarketing@yahoo.com.