Newbies can easily be influenced from what they hear from speculations.. I've read several times people tend to advice to hold long term. because its easy for them to say JUST HOLD cause theyre not the one losing! For me its not all about holding, its being smart about your own invesment know when to stop and cut the losses.
What are your thoughts?
Like you said, its not about how long you are holding for but about how smart you are. My own philosophy is invest when the market is falling, hold on the way up then sell when you feel its the right time.