Well, your kids are wrong. They imagine enjoying all the benefits in the present, while all the costs are already in the past so they don't properly account for

Well, your kids are wrong. They imagine enjoying all the benefits in the present, while all the costs are already in the past so they don't properly account for them. It's just confused thinking on their part (very common, judging by some of the comments here). (All of this is about "pushing" or "forcing", not about "encouraging", which I believe to be very different).