Thinking about what you do, and why, is essential to any business. So someone who can challenge you to do it may be worth their weight in gold. At least that’s what the clients of Ram Charan, a leading independent consultant, believe. “He forces you to tell him what it is you want to do,” says former Citibank CEO John Reed. “And he forces you to really be clear in your own mind about what those things are and what steps have to be taken.”

For more than 30 years, Charan has been trotting the globe dispensing advice. According to a profile of him in Fortune magazine, he lives modestly for a globetrotter—he owns virtually nothing (no house or car); he is single and helps support his extended family in India, chiefly with funds for education. For a man who counsels the titans of global business, he is surprisingly humble, fond of quoting Sanskrit sayings such as, “Fear, laziness and anger. These are the downfall of human beings.”

Asking Questions
The secret to Charan’s ability is his ferocious intellect and incredible knowledge. One executive says, “He probably knows more about corporate America than anyone.” But he is discreet. As Jack Welch, a former client, says, “He has this rare ability to distill meaningful from meaningless and transfer it to others in a quiet effective way without destroying confidences.”

One of Charan’s techniques is his ability to ask the right questions, questions that probe to the heart of a problem and challenge people to think very deeply about what is possible, probable and doable. Clients pay Ram Charan many thousands of dollars to challenge them in this way, but you don’t need an outsider to ask good questions. In fact, asking good questions is a practice that all managers can cultivate. Here are some suggested ones.

What about your work motivates you? Too basic? Not really. When we are engaged in day-to-day work, we often forget about what drew us to what we do in the first place. When facing problems, we get caught up in the issues rather than what we like about what we do. By asking this basic question you can get to the root of what you like to do. And if you are doing it, fine. But if you are not doing it, then what can you do about it? What changes can you make so that you find satisfaction? Do those changes involve job redesigns, task reassignments or prioritizing your time more efficiently? Answers to these questions will get you to the heart of what matters most to you and may provide a path for you to fill fulfillment. (Or point you in a new direction to try something new.)