I saw that this instance had a large number of users so I thought "more users->more content->more fun". Apparently, I had to prove my value by answering 3 questions that showed my interest in their community and my value as a potential future member.
What could possibly be my value to a general purpose instance besides money? I'm a software/cloud engineer so I guess there are things I could help with, but my guess is they were expecting me to say "I can donate".
I get it, they need donations to exist, but this upfront? And to a community I don't even know? Maybe I'm imagining things and they were looking for something else?
Do all instances rely on donations? I'd like to contribute to the instances I enjoy at some point. But only if I feel at home with them, not as a prerequisite to join.
It's not about money. They do have a particular take on running their instance than most open general-use instances. You can read about that and their rationale and decisions and decide whether it is for you.
Informed by that, you might then decide if beehaw is for you or not. If beehaw is for you, talk about why you are joining in particular regards to gelling with their particular philosophy.