Cold approach works great for a tall attractive male. I'm not that and it largely did not work well for me, but not for lack of courage.

An attractive male (top 5-10%) that cold approaches is a stud. The other 90-95% will be regarded as "creeps" for exactly the same behavior.

It's how women are wired. First they have high regard for their own attractiveness. Second they are insulted, even disgusted by an approach from a male that they perceive of lower attractiveness, especially if the approach can be seen by others. It signals to the larger group that the less-attractive male has evaluated her as a peer which potentially degrades her status.

Women have been naturally selected to highly regard and guard their own attractiveness and status and reject cold approaches from males with apparently unacceptably less status.

So make your cold approach but be ready to accept rejection.

By the way, I met my wife of 40 years with a cold approach. She was the most beautiful creature I had ever seen; I couldn't not try. So yes, it nearly always fails except when it doesn't.

It's not fair. It sucks. But if you don't learn to deal with the tension of this then your genetic code may not be passed into the next generation.