top of page

By:

Rashmi Kulkarni

23 March 2025 at 2:58:52 pm

Loss Aversion Is Why Your Good Idea Fails

Your upgrade is their loss until you prove otherwise. Last week, Rahul wrote about a simple truth: you’re not inheriting a business, you’re inheriting an equilibrium. This week, I want to talk about the most common reason that equilibrium fights back even when your idea is genuinely sensible. Here it is, in plain language: People don’t oppose improvement. They oppose loss disguised as improvement. When you step into a legacy MSME, most things are still manual, informal, relationship-driven....

Loss Aversion Is Why Your Good Idea Fails

Your upgrade is their loss until you prove otherwise. Last week, Rahul wrote about a simple truth: you’re not inheriting a business, you’re inheriting an equilibrium. This week, I want to talk about the most common reason that equilibrium fights back even when your idea is genuinely sensible. Here it is, in plain language: People don’t oppose improvement. They oppose loss disguised as improvement. When you step into a legacy MSME, most things are still manual, informal, relationship-driven. People have built their own ways of keeping work moving. It’s not perfect, but it’s familiar. When you introduce a new system, a new rule, a new “professional way,” you may be adding order but you’re also removing something  they were using to survive. And humans react more strongly to removals than additions. Behavioral economists Daniel Kahneman and Amos Tversky called this loss aversion where we feel losses more sharply than we feel gains. That’s why your promised “future benefit” struggles to compete with someone’s immediate fear. Which seat are you stepping into? Inherited seat:  People assume you’ll change things quickly to “prove yourself”. They brace for loss even before you speak. Hired seat:  People watch for hidden agendas: “New boss means new rules, new blame.” They protect themselves. Promoted seat:  Your peers worry the old friendship is now replaced by authority. They fear loss of comfort and access. Different seats, same emotion underneath: don’t take away what keeps me safe. Weighing Scale Think of an old kirana shop. The weighing scale may not be fancy, but it’s trusted. The shopkeeper has used it for years. Customers have seen it. Everyone has settled into that comfort. Now imagine someone walks in and says, “We’re upgrading your weighing scale. This is digital. More accurate. More modern.” Sounds good, right? But what does the shopkeeper hear ? “My customers might think the old scale was wrong.” (loss of trust) “I won’t be able to adjust for small realities.” (loss of flexibility) “If the digital scale shows something different, I’ll be accused.” (loss of safety) “This was my shop. Now someone else is deciding.” (loss of control) So even if the new scale is better, the shopkeeper will resist or accept it politely and quietly return to the old one when nobody is watching. That is exactly what happens in companies. Modernisation Pitch Most leaders pitch change like this: “We’ll become world-class.” “We’ll digitize.” “We’ll improve visibility.” “We’ll build a process-driven culture.” But for the listener, these are not benefits. These are threats, because they translate into losses: Visibility can mean exposure . Process can mean loss of discretion . Digitization can mean loss of speed  (at least initially). “Professional” can mean loss of status  for the old guard. So the person across the table is not debating your logic. They’re calculating their losses. Practical Way Watch what happens when you propose something simple like daily reporting. You say: “It’s just 10 minutes. Basic discipline.” They hear: “Daily reporting means daily scrutiny.” “If numbers dip, I will be questioned.” “If I show the truth, it will create conflict.” “If I don’t show the truth, I’ll be accused later.” In their mind, the safest response is: nod, agree, delay. Then you label them “resistant.” But they’re not resisting change. They’re resisting loss . Leader’s Job If you want adoption in an MSME, don’t sell modernization as “upgrade”. Sell it as protection . Instead of: “We need an ERP.” Try: “We need to stop money leakage and order confusion.” Instead of: “We need systems.” Try: “We need fewer customer escalations and less rework.” Instead of: “We need transparency.” Try: “We need fewer surprises at month-end.” This is not manipulation. This is translation. You’re speaking the language the system understands: risk, leakage, blame, customer loss, cash loss, fatigue. Field Test: Rewrite your pitch in loss-prevention language Pick one change you’re pushing this month. Now write two versions: Version A (your current pitch): What you normally say: upgrade, modern, efficiency, best practices. Version B (loss prevention pitch): Use this template: What are we losing today?  (money, time, customers, reputation, peace) Where is the leakage happening?  (handoffs, approvals, rework, vendor delays) What small protection will this change create? (fewer disputes, faster closure, less follow-up) What will not change?  (no layoffs, no humiliation, no sudden policing) What proof will we show in 2 weeks?  (one metric, one visible win) Now do one more important step: For your top 3 stakeholders, write the one loss they think they will face  if your change happens. Don’t argue with it. Just name it. Because once you name the fear, you can design around it. The close If you remember only one thing from this week, remember this: A “good idea” is not enough in a legacy MSME. People need to feel safe adopting it. You don’t have to dilute your standards. You just have to stop selling change like a TED talk and start selling it like a protection plan. Next week, we’ll deal with another invisible force that keeps companies stuck even when they agree with you: the status quo isn’t a baseline. It’s a competitor. (The writer is CEO of PPS Consulting, can be reached at rashmi@ppsconsulting.biz )

Chess Troika Inspires A Generation

Celebrating National Youth Day today, we look at three young chess stalwarts - World Champion Gukesh Dommaraju, Rameshbabu Praggnanandhaa and Arjun Erigaisi. After performing well in the Global Chess League in Mumbai held from December 14-23, 2025, at the Royal Opera House, they participated in the FIDE World Rapid and Blitz Championships held in Doha, Qatar, from December 26-30, 2025 where Arjun won a bronze medal in each category.


Gukesh Dommaraju from Chennai became the youngest world chess champion at 18 years, beating Ding Liren for the crown in December 2024 in Singapore, shattering the previous record of 22 years which was set by GM Garry Kasparov in 1985.


A chess prodigy, Gukesh earned the Grand Master title at 12 years, becoming the second youngest to do so. Gukesh became the challenger to the world championship in April 2024 by winning the 2024 FIDE Candidates Tournament with a score of 9/14 which also made him the youngest-ever Candidates Tournament winner.


“Going into the FIDE World Rapid and Blitz Championships in Doha, Qatar, I had some good practice from the Global Chess League in Mumbai recently; played a few rapid games against some very strong opponents. My strategy would be to just play fast and try to focus on each game and make the most of it,” said the 19-year-old, who had defeated Magnus Carlsen in the Norway Chess tournament earlier in 2025.


After starting playing chess at the age of seven, Gukesh won the under-12 title at the World Youth Chess Championship in 2018. He followed it up with multiple gold medals at the 2018 Asian Youth Chess Championship. He became an International Master in March 2017.


His rise in the chess world has been truly phenomenal. In 2019, after becoming the second-youngest grandmaster in the history of the game, after Sergey Karjakin, he was part of the Indian team that won the silver medal at the 2022 Asian Games in the men’s team competition.


An easily approachable, well-mannered and humble world chess champion, Gukesh won the team bronze and the individual gold medal at the 44th Chess Olympiad in 2022.


This remarkable string of successes earned Gukesh the top-rated Indian player spot in the September 2023 rating list, ending Viswanathan Anand’s 37-year record.


In the 45th Chess Olympiad in 2024, he won both team and individual gold medals. In his early playing days, Gukesh’s father, an ENT surgeon in Chennai, quit his job to accompany and encourage his son during chess tournaments.


Fetched Fame

Twenty-year-old prodigious Indian chess Grandmaster Rameshbabu Praggnanandhaa (often called R. Praggnanandhaa or Pragg), clinched the Global Chess League 2025 title, beating defending Champions Triveni Continental Kings in the finals.


The young chess star from Chennai, famous for defeating Magnus Carlsen multiple times in rapid/online formats, including early wins as a child. He has secured a Candidates spot for 2026 by being the top FIDE Circuit player.


Known for his aggressive style, he became the second Indian ever to cross the 2700 rating mark. He says, “I’m ambitious. I want to win tournaments when I’m playing, after all the hard work that I’ve been putting in for years.”


An Arjuna Award winner, Pragg won the World Youth Chess Championship Under-8 title in 2013, earning him the title of FIDE Master. He won the under-10 title in 2015. In 2016, Praggnanandhaa became the youngest international master in history, at the age of 10.


Being introduced to chess by his elder sister Vaishali, they are the first brother and sister to earn grandmaster titles, with Praggnanandhaa doing so in 2018 and his sister doing so in 2023. They are also the first brother and sister to qualify for the prestigious Candidates Tournament.


A chess prodigy, Pragg won the second place in the 2023 Chess World Cup. He was also part of the Indian team that won the silver medal at the 2022 Asian Games in the men’s team competition, and the gold medal in the open section at the 45th Chess Olympiad in 2024.


Flying High

The 22-year-old Arjun Erigaisi, from Warangal, Telangana, kept the Indian flag flying high in Doha during the 2025 World Rapid and Blitz Championships, where he won a bronze in both categories. Congratulating him on his wins, Prime Minister Narendra Modi tweeted, “His skills, patience and passion are exemplary.”


Arjun Erigaisi has been growing from strength to strength. In 2021, he became the first Indian to qualify for the Goldmoney Asian Rapid of the Champions Chess Tour 2021.


In November 2021, Arjun emerged third out of 82 players in the Lindores Abbey Blitz Tournament at Riga. In March 2022, he was crowned the Indian National Champion by winning the 58th MPL National Championship of India 2022 with a score of 8½/11. He went on to win the 19th Delhi Open, in the same month.


At the Chess Olympiad in Budapest in September 2024, his performance rating of 2968 earned him an individual gold medal and helped India to win their first ever team gold medal at the Olympiad.



Comments

bottom of page