Yes holding is waste so long times even a few years, alot of newbies investor was decide to hold crypto in the beginning of 2018 without any risk management, so they getting loss much money. So trading or holding should be with risk management.
Holding isnt a waste of time because when you hold , you didnt do anything . you can just leave your coins inside your wallet and continue your life outside the crypto scene . trading should be consider a waste of time because trading is an active activity . you dont need any risk management when you hold because hodling is not risky as trading and as long as you chose the best coins .
if you don't have any strategy and patience in holding, of course holding will only waste your time and money, look at what happened last year, many newbies do holding without clear knowledge and strategies, then when prices fall and stay low in long time and then makes many of them give up and do cutlose, it is a form of waste time and your money