Why Commissions Hurt Productivity and Job Satisfaction (Octalysis Analysis)
Commission-based pay is one of the most common compensation models in sales — and one of the most…
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The Blog
Ideas on motivation, behavior & design.
Deep dives on the psychology behind why people do what they do — from Yu-kai Chou, creator of the Octalysis Framework. Pick the topic that matters to you.
Trump vs Clinton Debate Analysis: How Charisma and Core Drives Decided the 2016 Election
This article was written by Contributing Writer Erik van Mechelen with Yu-kai’s video commentary of the first 2016…
Gamifying Kickstarter: Bears vs Babies Case Study
This post was written by Contributing Writer Erik van Mechelen after Octalysis community member, Ivan Lee, notified Yu-kai…
Why We Procrastinate On Simple Things
This article was written by Erik van Mechelen. Content is based on a video on OctalysisPrime.com from Yu-kai…
Critical Analysis of “Why We Love Games That Most Enrage Us”: Why We Actually Enjoy Hard Fun
This article was written by Contributing Writer Erik van Mechelen with significant input from Yu-kai Chou and the…
Gamification Analysis of Snapchat: How Camera and Storytelling Captured Attention
This article is written by Contributing Writer Erik van Mechelen. Editor’s Note (2026): This analysis was originally published…
Motivation: Why It’s Dumb To Pay Your Contractors Late
This article was co-written by Yu-kai Chou and Erik van Mechelen. Table of Contents About Yu-kai Chou Paying…