Hi James,
There is a difference in French between 'profiter de quelque chose' and 'bénéficier de quelque chose'.
The first one to 'make the most of something' in the sense of 'saisir l'occasion'
Profitez bien de la vie, elle est très courte ! = Make the most of life, it's very short!
Profitez de mon absence pour emmener ma mère au cinéma = Make the most of my absence to take my mother to the cinema
Bénéficier de is more to gain from something, like 'tirer profit ' often associated with money.
Nous avons bénéficié de l'aide de l'État = We benefited from state aid
Cette nouvelle mesure va bénéficier à beaucoup de gens = This new measure is going to be of benefit to a lot of people
Bonne continuation!
