Loss Aversion

Don't lose your work!

Your unsaved changes will be permanently lost if you don't save now.

We as humans don't love losing things. It's why we back up our data, buy insurance, and put so much effort into throwing AirTags on everything we own. Designers can leverage this fear of loss to their advantage.

The demo is an all-time classic involving a saving dialog. It's a common UI pattern for checking on the user before they do a potentially destructive action. Note the underlining of "permanently lost" in the subtitle. This phrasing is powerful, because it almost scares the user into keeping their work safe.