There's a video I want you to see. Actually there are two or three, at least. If you don't have the time right now, save them for later but if you can, watch the first one now.
Everything that mainstream economists base their assumptions on is wrong. Higher pay does not necessarily lead to better performance. In other words, the financial wizards on Wall Street could be replaced by others making a fraction of the money for better results, including, possibly, not trashing the world economy.
The most incredible stuff happens when money is no longer an issue and people are free to, for lack of a better word, play. Think of all the wonderful things we have because people donated their work, ingenuity, talent, and creativity to make Linux, Wikipedia, this site, and so much more.