I'm talking about the Cold Approach method. On paper it sounds great. You're just walking up to a stranger and starting a conversation. If it works out, great! If not, no hard feelings, carry on and wait for the next opportunity.

But in reality, this method is terrible and shouldn't be encouraged. Here are some reasons why:

The rejection rate is mindblowingly high. I've seen plenty of posts/comments on here saying stuff like "I've done about 500 cold approaches this month and got 3 phone numbers and one instant date out of it. Its all about perseverance and resilience."

Now, first of all this is EXTREMELY unhealthy. Sure you might be resilient enough to take rejection hundreds of times and still have good self esteem. But its only a matter of time before it gets under your skin. And then what?

Also, out of the successful cold approaches, how many of them actually work out? Most of the time if a random girl gives you her number, its either fake, or she gave it to you just so you can get out of her hair. Say she actually does want to go on a date with you, great! You won the game... Right? Well chances are she's not right for you anyway. Why? Because you cold approached her along with 300 other girls that day. She probably didn't appeal to you in any way apart from being pretty. You didn't approach her because you felt butterflies in your stomach and thought "Wow this woman is perfect, I just know she's the one for me." You approached her because she's a female and looks attractive. Thats it.

  1. Its annoying and cringe worthy.

Put yourself in the shoes of whoever you're approaching. They are most likely out for a particular reason. Maybe they are on their way to work, or meeting up with friends, or shopping etc. Then in comes this random dude who stops her in her tracks and starts talking to them for absolutely no reason. Its annoying to most people, which is why the rejection rate is so high. Unless you are in an environment which encourages approaching strangers, such as at a party, a social gathering etc, then don't do it. Go to a social event and you'll realise how much more natural it is to approach women. Because its an environment that caters to it. A shopping centre, a college campus, a side walk etc are not places people want to be disturbed. Thats the annoying aspect.

The CRINGEY aspect is that you are, first of all demonstrating to the person that you have nothing better to do than to talk to random strangers. It just isn't attractive because you're showing how desperate for attention you are. You're also out by yourself which is another factor. Not to say going out by yourself is cringe by any means. I go out by myself very often. But it becomes cringey when you're just walking around by yourself, with no clear aim or direction. Just there to pick up girls.

  1. It absolutely REEKS of desperation

Women are not stupid. They know that if you approached her out of nowhere, that you definitely have done this before, and have probably done this 50 times just today. She'll wonder why you can't find a girl through your social circle or online. Or why all the other women you likely approached before her turned you down. She'll realise how desperate you are if your only option is approaching strangers at shopping malls. Why do you think the rejection rate is so high?

Now you might be very charismatic, charming and witty. That'll up your chances a bit. But it won't retract from the fact that you seem needy, you are disturbing their day, and you are being cringey.