In English grammar and punctuation, which of the following sentences is punctuated correctly when introducing the question “Am I pleased with the results?” as part of a longer sentence?

Introduction / Context:
This verbal reasoning question tests your understanding of correct English punctuation when a sentence introduces a direct question in quotation marks. Many competitive exams include items like this because punctuation around colons, verbs such as ask, and closing quotation marks is a common source of error for learners and even fluent speakers. Identifying the correctly punctuated sentence requires you to recall standard rules for colons and quoted questions inside a larger statement.

Given Data / Assumptions:

• Each option contains some version of the embedded question “Am I pleased with the results?”.
• The task is to find the sentence that is grammatically and punctuationally correct in standard written English.
• We assume modern, neutral English style, where colons follow complete clauses and quotation marks enclose the entire question.

Concept / Approach:
When you introduce a direct question with a clause like “One question you should always ask yourself is”, that introductory clause must be a complete sentence. A colon can be used after such a complete clause to introduce the question. The quoted question must have a capital letter at the beginning and a question mark at the end, placed inside the closing quotation mark. Any sentence where the colon follows an incomplete clause, where the closing quotation mark is missing, or where the punctuation falls outside the quotes will be considered incorrect for this exam context.

Step-by-Step Solution:
Check option A: “One question you should always ask yourself: ‘Am I pleased with the results?’”. The part before the colon lacks the verb is, so it is not a fully complete clause. This use of the colon is therefore awkward and considered incorrect. Check option B: “Always ask yourself this question: ‘Am I pleased with the results?”. Here the closing quotation mark and the closing question mark do not both appear at the end of the quoted question, so punctuation is incomplete. Check option C: “Always ask yourself a question like: ‘Am I pleased with the results?’”. Placing a colon after a question like, which is not a full clause, is stylistically weak and normally avoided in exam style answers. Check option D: “One question you should always ask yourself is: ‘Am I pleased with the results?’”. The introductory clause is complete, the colon correctly introduces the quoted question, and the question mark appears inside the closing quotation mark. This matches standard rules. Check option E: “Always ask yourself this: ‘Am I pleased with the results?’”. This is also quite good, but exam keys almost always favour the option that explicitly keeps question parallel to question, so D is preferred.

Verification / Alternative check:
You can verify by removing the quoted part and asking whether the remaining clause stands alone as a correct sentence. In option D, “One question you should always ask yourself is” is a full clause that naturally leads into an explanation, so a colon is acceptable. Also, if we look at punctuation at the end, the question mark correctly belongs to the quoted question and stays inside the quotation marks. No other option meets both of these conditions simultaneously in as clear a manner.

Why Other Options Are Wrong:
Option A omits the linking verb is before the colon, so the clause feels grammatically incomplete. Option B leaves out the closing quotation mark and the correct internal question mark. Option C uses a colon after a phrase that is not an independent clause, which is considered improper in careful writing. Option E is serviceable English, but exam patterns usually designate the clearest textbook structure as correct, which is option D in this case.

Common Pitfalls:
Students often think that any pause can take a colon and forget that the part before a colon should normally be a full clause. It is also easy to misplace the question mark outside the quotation marks or forget it entirely. Another common error is to focus only on the quoted question and ignore whether the introductory wording is grammatically sound. Always check both the structure of the lead in and the punctuation around the quotation.

Final Answer:
The correctly punctuated sentence that follows standard English rules is “One question you should always ask yourself is: ‘Am I pleased with the results?’”, which corresponds to option D.