The weekend is the motivator of college students, the light at the end of the tunnel, the backbone of youthful sanity (or perhaps the destroyer of it, actually). It’s the time to mix it up and get out after classes, schedules, meetings, work, being on your best behavior and possibly being pushed into hermit mode for five days. Whether you are a bars-goer, a house party hopper, mixer mosher, or whatever else, you probably count on those weekend evenings to spice up your agenda a bit. 

So, it’s a bummer when you just get a dud night. Maybe the DJ wasn’t bumping the right jams. Maybe it’s just not your crowd. Maybe you just aren’t feeling it. Sometimes, it just happens. Well, here are some ideas for the next time you find yourself with a dull night and you need to work it a bit.

1. Start “ghost” dancing behind random strangers when they aren’t looking. It is imperative not to make any contact when partaking in this activity because then that starts bordering assault and no one likes that. Conditions are best in crowded bars and ideal subjects are mid-conversation with someone who hopefully won’t give your game away. Possibly less acceptable for guys to do to girls.

2. Hone in on a stranger and enthusiastically congratulate them on their birthday, which it most likely will not actually be. Buy them a birthday shot. See if you can get a few others to join in for maximum excitement; singing is encouraged. Gracefully make your exit thereafter. It’s like random acts of kindness: bar edition, with a birthday twist. 

3. If you are somewhere that you have access to the speakers, take over as DJ and play some great old school sing-alongs or some real twerk-worhty beats. Best to gauge the crowd before making your selection. If you can’t gain full control of the music, start making suggestions until you are on the verge of being escorted off the premises for back-seat DJing.

4. Enjoy your beverage on the floor. Not in an “I’m too drunk to stand” way, but in an “I don’t feel confined to the limitations of feet or chairs this evening” way. Best to not do this when wearing your favorite dress if you are somewhere with floors that are more beer-mud than hardwood. 

5. If you are at a bar, or a place where there is a bartender of sorts, have them take a shot with you. Maybe you will bond and they will feel more inclined to give you free drinks…maybe. 

6. Pretend to fall asleep on the shoulder of someone you’ve just met and are chatting with. You must employ great acting skills with this to convince them that you are actually so tired that you can fall asleep on the spot. Try not to break character and see how long they let this continue before being uncomfortable enough to say something. You may be surprised. 

7. Partake in a friendly game of dare or dare. Yes, it is an incredibly elementary game, but parties have such ample material to pull from. Try to move past “I dare you to go make out with that guy’s face” to more creative options. It’s really your preference though. 

8. Just start making laps around the place. No way you make it more than four without someone engaging you in some potentially interesting conversation. It’s best to make serious eye contact with as many people as possible while making these laps. 

9. Start making up handshakes with every new person you meet. Try to remember and deploy these handshakes again if the opportunity presents itself later in the evening.

10. Leave wherever you are and go to Taco Bell. 

I have used most of these recommended tactics on occasion before and have found them to be moderately to exceptionally successful in increasing the entertainment level of the evening. Who knows, maybe you will make some new great friends if you try them! Or deter them, in which case it’s their loss because you are just a bundle of fun.