Many people are struggling with a question: should they trade frequently to buy the dip and sell at the top, or just buy and hold?

Let's start with the logic of timing the market. It sounds very tempting—buy low, sell high, how simple. But the problem is, historical data can be harsh: the days with the biggest gains are often just a few, and if you miss those, your annual returns can be ruined. "Lightning often strikes after a sharp decline," this is what it means. The more you try to precisely catch the peaks and troughs, the more likely you are to fall into traps.

Long-term holding sounds Zen-like, but it doesn't mean buying and ignoring everything. The core idea is to ignore volatility and stay in the game. What's the problem? When the market is extremely overvalued, the money you hold is actually depreciating—that's called the "dead money" period, where the opportunity cost is eating away at you. So blindly holding on may not be the optimal solution.

In plain terms, both approaches have pitfalls. The key is to recognize what type of investor you are and then stick to your own rhythm.