Long term is the smarter choice. Short term and day trading are too time consuming and also unhealthy. If you want to make a good profit without having to worry about prices 24/7 you should focus on projects with long term development and just wait for them to reach their goals. If you believe a coin will survive in the next 5-10 years then you wouldn't worry if the market goes down for a week or two. That's the smarter thing to do and it will allow you to see the potential of the coins.