A discussion was recently posted to one of my LinkedIn groups asking us to describe our lives in six words. Inspired by the Six-Word Memoir Project, it created a very fascinating discussion. If you could only use six words to tell your memoir and communicate your life to someone, what would they be?

My response… Work hard! Play often! Love much!

How about you? Can you sum up your life in six words?

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We have an ongoing battle in my house regarding what qualifies as a good Christmas movie and what doesn’t. We battle for the television remote when it’s prime time and argue over what to rent at the movie store. I think this dilemma is a an apt representation of the variety of preferences and points of view. Should a Christmas movie make you laugh or cry, teach a lesson or make you cheer for the underdog?

The answer…It depends. On what moves you, what speaks to you, what gets your attention. What one person fimds hilarious, another might find offensive or stupid. And what one person finds touching and wise another finds sappy and irrelevant.

I find this to be a good lesson in life. In order to be happy in our relationships, successful in our businesses and content in our lives, we need to remain curious and interested and tolerant of differences. If you want to understand and relate to others, be curious, have a sense of humor and engage them in conversation. That’s always a good practice both in business and in life. And besides, Christmas movies are fun!

So, at the risk of sparking a heated debate here are my top 10 Christmas movies. Some have changed over the years, and some just keep drawing me back. You’ll notice I have left many holiday classics, like White Christmas and Holiday Inn. They never appealed to me, much to my mother’s dismay.

10. Home alone (1990) – While not technically a Christmas movie per se, we can’t help but laugh at the crazy antics and applaud the determination of one small, but very resourceful young boy.

9. It’s a Wonderful Life (1946) – Because everyone matters! No matter what kind of losers we might think we are, each of our lives mean something and we do make a difference in the world.

8. The Nightmare Before Christmas (1993) – This brilliantly creative movie from the horrifyingly creative mind of Tim Burton makes my list, because it’s a different twist on the traditional holiday movie with humor, love and fantastical characters. But most of all, it’s a movie that my teens would sit and watch with me every year and that’s what matters most.

7. The Preacher’s Wife (1996) – The songs are wonderful (Whitney Houston,) the cast charming (Denzel Washington) and the message on target. It’s a sleeper that many haven’t seen and it’s worth a look if you’re curious.

6. The Polar Express (2004) – Magnificent animation, heart-warming story and Tom Hanks. A fabulous combination for all ages.

5. How the Grinch Stole Christmas (2000) – Jim Carrey…enough said. Jim Carrey makes the Grinch both lovable and laughable at the same time while giving us a little nudge to be kind.

4. The Miracle on 34th Street (1994) – The original was my favorite as a child, but I think this version with Elizabeth Perkins and Dylan McDermott is fabulous. They made this heart-warming story relevant again for a whole new generation of viewers.

3. Elf - (2003)  - It took me a few years to warm up to this movie, but now I have  a new appreciation for Will Farrell. We laugh hysterically throughout most of this movie and my children still frequently refer to “the throne of lies.”

2. The Muppet Christmas Carol (1992) – I usually get some argument here for going against Jim Carrey or the old version, but Michael Caine and the Muppets can’t be beat.

1. The Santa Claus - (1994) – This movie just hits all the right buttons for me. It makes me feel warm and fuzzy and makes me laugh at the same time. And Tim Allen is hilarious as Santa.

In the interests of fair play I will give an honorable mention to A Christmas Story (1983), my husband’s perennial favorite and Die Hard (1988) because while it’s not really a holiday movie, it always reminds me of Christmas and makes me want to cheer for the good guys!

Bring on the discussion! What are your favorites? Which movies do you agree? Disagree? What have I forgotten?

And really why shouldn’t you? Despite the fact that it is often serious and at times difficult, life really does play out much like a game. We compete against each other and sometimes work in teams. We try to accumulate possessions and titles as if they were points on the scoreboard. We advance by a combination of choices, strategy and sheer luck.

So why shouldn’t we get a score?

Only in this case you are the only one who can decide how many points you are awarded…

Let’s have some fun and find out how we are doing at the game of life.

Give yourself from 1 – 20 points in each of the 5 areas based on how well you think you are doing.

Health – How is your health? Consider your weight, diet, fitness and energy as well as any health problems you may have.

Relationships – How are your relationships? How deep and fulfilling is your relationship with your significant other, your children, your parents or your siblings. How about your friends?

Career – How satisfied are you with your career or business life? Are you content? Are you contributing meaningful work? Are you doing something you enjoy? Are you being valued appropriately?

Happiness – How happy are you? Really? Do you feel good about your life? Do you have a hopeful, positive attitude? Do you feel a sense of balance or are you feeling unstable or overwhelmed?

Money – This is not about how much money you have, but with your perception of it. Do you have enough money? Are you responsible in your managing of your money? Do you feel secure about money? Or are you always worried?

Now add up your score in each area to get your “Life Score.”

Your score is yours alone. You do not have to share. It’s not about comparing or competing with anyone other than yourself. You decide what it means and what, if anything, you’d like to do about it.

My scoring guidelines:

75-100 – You are either lying to yourself…or you really know what you want out of life and are making good decisions and taking consistent action to keep moving in a positive direction.

50-74 – You are probably making good choices much of the time and may have some idea of what you want out of life, but there is room for improvement. You may have a nagging health issue or be worried about money or unhappy in your career. Or you may just be juggling everything pretty well, but feel that you can do better.

25-49 – You probably aren’t really clear on what you want or what you should be doing.  You know that your choices could be better, but you just can’t seem to take consistent action toward your goals. Or you are so focused on one aspect of your life that the others are completely suffering. You could use some help.

0-24 – You desperately need help! You are totally missing out on the fullness of what life has to offer you. But you can make changes. It’s not hopeless; not at all.

How did you do? Are you happy with your life score?

If you are…. Congratulations! Good job!

If you’re not… You can do better. Change is possible and it’s doesn’t even have to be that hard. You might benefit from coaching, from self-discovery, life planning or clear goal setting. The good news is that much of your life is within your control. Yes, there is an element of luck and circumstances, but to a large extent you have the power.

Your power lies in your choices, your actions and your attitude.

How you use that power determines the outcome and experience of your life.

Care to share? How satisfied are you with your life score? What will you do about it?

Question everything, move forward, enjoy the journey.