Why People Declined Cash Rewards (The Psychology of Incentives)

Why did people turn down a $5,000 cash reward for referring a candidate? Dakota Younger discovered a strange psychological phenomenon while building his referral platform: offering money sometimes decreases motivation. In this interview, he breaks down the complex psychology of incentives, explaining why altruism often outperforms cash and how to structure a referral program that actually works. Dakota also explains why posting jobs is the least effective way to hire, the power of accessing passive talent through social capital, and the "Ice Cream Study" theory on why giving people too many choices leads to decision paralysis. Finally, he shares his most humbling lesson as a founder: admitting that he knows "absolutely nothing." Check out the company: https://goboon.co

👀 CONNECT WITH SEAN

Subscribe: https://www.youtube.com/@seanweisbrot

LinkedIn: https://linkedin.com/in/seanweisbrot

Inquiries: welivetobuild@gmail.com

🕒 CHAPTERS

00:00 - Why Most Hiring Tools Fail (Employer-Centric)

01:39 - The Power of Social Capital in Referrals

04:10 - Why "Passive Talent" is the Gold Standard

06:27 - Hiring Remote Developers (Sean's Experience)

11:26 - How to Incentivize Referrals (Points vs. Cash)

16:34 - Why People Declined My $5,000 Cash Reward

18:34 - The Psychology of Altruism vs. Money

23:20 - The "Ice Cream Study": Why Less Choice is More

28:34 - Cultural Differences in Motivation (Asia vs. West)

31:35 - The #1 Lesson: "I Know Absolutely Nothing"

📈 WORK WITH ME

▶ Startup Fundraising: https://welivetobuild.com/fundraising

▶ Sponsor the Channel: https://www.welivetobuild.com/collaborate

▶ My AI/Automation Agency: https://optimai.ai

🎧 LISTEN TO THE AUDIO VERSION

Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/68lykxIMOyofZNiWSF4vFx

iTunes: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/we-live-to-build/id1531994765

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