I found or I have found

[Lia20]

Hello again,

I seem to have a problem with thw word have.
I thought that you only use it for ongoing experiences. But I heard a sentence about a pas t experience: " Iv'e found that experience to be rewarding"
Is this correct? shouldn't you say: I found that experience to be...
thank you

[AndreiaP]

I found the experience very rewarding.

"I´ve found" is used to reveal a discovery either personal or not. So I´ve found that experience to be very rewarding.

[Mister Micawber]

Both forms are correct.

Present perfect need not reflect an ongoing experience; it merely connects to the present in some way. When s/he says 'I've found it rewarding', it suggests that the speaker may try to have the same experience again in the future, or that s/he continues to reap its rewards from time to time, including the near past. If it was a single past reward for a past experience, and the speaker wishes to convey just those two past events (the experience and the reward), then 'I found' is fine.
_________________
Native English teacher at Mister Micawber's