I believe the concept of HODLing Bitcoin is nearly as old as Bitcoin itself with the fundamental reason and hope that it will increase more in value over the years. Although several persons are entitled to there own reasons for HODLing, could it be that some persons HODL because they are waiting for the perfect time or they are too scared to sell or lose a percentage of their Bitcoin?
Hodling for a long time is never a sign of fear to sell, Bitcoin is like the new Gold and most people are holding on to it because we all know how valuable of an asset Bitcoin is and you wouldn't want to sell now and watch the price skyrocket later in future. Bitcoin is a currency too same as Fiat currency and there's nothing wrong if I choose to hold on to my digital currency which is Bitcoin just the same way I have money in my Fiat account, everyone has different reasons for choosing not to sell and mine is hold and see what it does in future, I'm really curious to know how Bitcoin's price will rise in the next decade.
And you said it well, Bitcoin is both money and an asset, so holding it is just like saving your fiat or stacking up gold bars for the future. Nobody can really predict how high it’ll go, but history keeps showing us that those who held longer came out stronger. So yeah, hodling is a part of the game, not weakness.
People may sometimes mistake it for fear, but it is actually discipline. Same way someone won’t rush to sell their land just because the price jumped a little, a real Bitcoin holder knows the bigger picture is ahead...