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Fleur: journalist and business mentor

@fleurbainger

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I help high achievers build confidence, pitch, storytell and work unconventionally.
+ I write for Aus Travlr, Aus Geo, Lonely Pl, Escape, Horizons +👇

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South Africa is extraordinary. A lioness with a kill. White rhinos by a waterhole. Pelicans soaring in ways I’ve never seen.

Here’s a little snapshot of my days at @clubmedsouthafrica‘s new safari park, experiencing it for a future feature story in @internationaltraveller magazine.

#southafrica #safari #lion #journalist #internationaltraveller taken in South Africa by @fleurbainger

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5 days ago

Did you hear me on the radio on Monday night? I was chatting to ABC Nightlife about how astonishingly affordable Vietnam is.

You can get a banh mi for $2. A massage with sound healing for $25. A keratin hair treatment and cut for $35.

Japan’s value has been great on the Aussie dollar, but Vietnam’s is arguably better.

I tried all these things and more. I shared what I found with the ABC audience - tune in via Apple Podcasts - and I wrote a story about it for Escape magazine nationally (find it online). Scroll past the text to see my pics (including a foot bath at a coffee house that I got in a two-for-one type deal for $6.50).

I love allowing a story to go further, so that more people can benefit from it. Making an impact is my driver.

Have you been to Vietnam lately? What was your best travel purchase? Add your tips below.

@abc @escape.com.au #radio #vietnam #goodvalue #travel #abcradio taken in Hoi An ancient town by @fleurbainger

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10 days ago

You wouldn’t think an elephant could sneak up silently behind you and be sniffing the air before you sense its presence.

Yet that’s exactly what happened to me.

I was captivated by what was unfolding out the front of the safari vehicle, when I felt the energy of something behind me. I turned in my seat and had an unforgettable moment of surprise and connection.

I didn’t feel scared or threatened. I felt joy, wonder, awe and presence with this immense being.

Watch the full clip to share in the moment and bask in the elephant love ❤️ from my South African safari.

Invited to celebrate the launch of @clubmedsouthafrica and cover its dual property safari-meets-beach experience for @internationaltraveller magazine.

#southafrica #elephant #safari #clubmed #travel taken in Club Med South Africa by @fleurbainger

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11 days ago

Affordable holidays are getting harder to find - the cost of living isn’t only rising in Australia. But the value in Vietnam is still excellent - both in the price of nearly everything, and the richness of experience.

This feature of mine came out in @escape recently. It’s a 48hr snapshot of everything I did and exactly what I spent in the country’s most charming of riverside towns, Hoi An.

As an ancient trading port servicing multiple cultures, Hoi An has long had a craftsmanship not found elsewhere. Tailors, potters, lantern makers, cordwainers (that’s the proper term for from-scratch shoe makers!) and stamp makers. It endures today, and I bought so much I needed extra luggage to get it home (I may have secretly planned for this).

It’s also changed dramatically in the 26 years since I first came here. But I found my favourite shop from back then - I still use the patchwork quilt I bought, sewed from hill tribe costume off-cuts by people with challenges like blindness - and the store is still supporting those who need it. It’s a lot fancier now, includes a tea room, and is in a different shop house, but I felt so thrilled to buy there again.

Because even when things are affordable, buying consciously feels good on both sides, don’t you think?

The shop, and others (including a brilliant local designer) are in my article. Find it online or zoom in 😊

#vietnam #hoian #affordabletravel #travelwriter #goodvalue taken in Hoi An ancient town by @fleurbainger

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23 days ago

I’ve been writing about one of my favourite topics lately: the Kimberley magic that takes hold each time I head north.

I was sent up to @berkeleyriverlodge to report on its remarkable reopening - after two cyclones and record rains - for @austtraveller. Look out for my feature in the next beautiful issue.

I’m very conscious how lucky I am, and I’m also aware this is a path I very deliberately chose, and determinedly stuck to. Even when my pitches got crickets, or my replies to editors were left hanging.

That’s all part of freelancing and running your own business. Building resilience is as key as being willing to persevere, while keeping the big picture in mind.

I see so many people give up their dreams because they don’t get a reply, and they make it mean it’s not possible for them, or they’re not good enough, or there’s too much competition. That’s why I teach mindset and confidence alongside pitching, storytelling and business skills.

You can read all the advice and intellectually learn all the tricks. But if mindset and confidence are wobbly, and your body seizes up, chances are, you’ll bow out early and miss what’s meant for you.

If this resonates, reach out. Tell me where you’re at on your journey.

#traveljournalist #writingmentor #professionaldevelopment #mentor #businessmentor taken in The Kimberley Region, Western Australua by @fleurbainger

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24 days ago

Getting this story to print was a journey, but it’s nothing compared to the 30 years of environmental protection campaigning that’s gone into achieving marine park status for Exmout Gulf.

What an honour to tell this story with author Tim Winton for Australian Geographic magazine.

Photographer Brooke Pyke and I explored the nature nursery by boat, microlite and 4WD - check out the 14 pages in the current issue, with a bonus ‘From the Field’ yarn up front.

Have you read the story? What feelings did it generate in you? Comment below, I’d love to know.

🐋
#exmouthgulf #mainepark #timwinton #australiangeographic #ningaloo taken in Exmouth Gulf by @fleurbainger

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a month ago

I’ve been writing lots about Vietnamese coffee culture lately, with a feature commissioned by a US publication.

My trip in May saw me hop from cafe to cafe in Da Nang, with the expert guidance of local @helenrecipes.

Being a travel writer opens up amazing experiences in the moment, then I get to relive them when I’m writing, and pouring over the hundreds of memory photos I snap. I take reams of notes so that the discoveries are ready to be shared when I reach for the laptop.

I’ll let you know when this story is out.

#travel #traveljournalist #danang #coffee #vietnam taken in Da Nang, Vietnam by @fleurbainger

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a month ago

What expression can you read on our faces? If you detect a mix of incredulity, hilarity, relief, fatigue and hope, you’d be about right.

I’m on assignment for @australiangeographic, revving a high powered boat through swell with the author Tim Winton, as we attempt to explore Exmouth Gulf in wild, uncooperative weather. It was so hairy, we rescheduled our watery trip a few times, unsure we’d even get to do it.

I was there to cover the newly announced marine park, looking at the little-known wonders above and below the waterline, and discovering how the new protections might pan out for this unique swath of nature.

The backstory to getting it to happen forms the tale in AG’s ‘Notes from the field’ at the start of the mag, with my multi-page feature later in the book.

So proud to see it out in print. Take a look and learn about the connection between the life on UNESCO-World Heritage listed Ningaloo Reef, and the extraordinary, yet overlooked Gulf.

#australiangeographic #exmouthgulf #ningaloo #westernaustralia #timwinton
@waparkswildlife @marineconservation.au @birdseyeviewningaloo @westernaustralia @karen_mcghee taken in Exmouth Gulf by @fleurbainger

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2 months ago

Three features in the Winter issue of @racwa Horizons 🙌

I’m having a hard time handling all the crappy things that are happening on our planet at the moment, but it helps to see glimmers of goodness in my backyard of Western Australia.

I love that I get to write about ways to marvel at the Aurora Australis without leaving the state, interview people who are pivoting their town’s bicentenary away from a celebration of colonisation to a symbol of reconciliation with the Noongar Menang people, and a 4WD enthusiast throwing in the grind of traditional mining industry employment for a more creative life on and off the road.

Get yourself a copy and have a read to lift your spirits.

Thanks to
@amazingalbanywa @visitalbanywa #albany2026
@lands.unseen #4wd #landsunseen #wathedreamstate
@naturebynathan #auroraaustralis taken in Western Australia by @fleurbainger

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3 months ago

The first time I did a piece to camera and posted it online, I turned off my phone for 12 hours.

I was terrified about what people would say, or that I’d look ridiculous or say something stupid.

It was deeply uncomfortable.

Now, years later, I’m doing this recording on the fly and throwing it up without worrying too much, because I’ve worked on undoing my perfectionist tendencies, learned a number of visibility skills, and invested in professional growth. One of the big shifts for me? Realising that done is better than perfect.

I may not have ideal lighting, styled hair or even particularly good make up today, but it’s what I’m saying that matters. Falling forward is what I teach - and show - my mentorship clients, be they entrepreneurial business owners, freelance journalists or career shifters.

Getting work out there imperfectly is always better than endlessly polishing it and then never showing it.

Are you a perfectionist with a portfolio of content that’s never seen the light of day?

Tell me below in the comments. taken in Perth, Western Australia by @fleurbainger

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3 months ago

Getting crickets from those you reach out to?

If this is this how you end your emails, it might be why. Let’s look into it.

What are you thanking them for? Reading your email? = disempowering

What exactly do you want to be hearing back from them? Specify it.

When is “soon”? Super ambiguous.

And tone of voice? This sounds sing-song’y.

I teach my mentorship clients how to engage so they don't just get replies, they get what they want.

It works for anyone you're pitching, making an ask of, or sending a proposal to, across any business.

Think I could help you? DM me now and ask about my private mentoring.

Fixing simple mistakes can make a big difference.

#mentor #businessmentor #mindset #writing #mentorship #empowerment taken in Perth, Western Australia by @fleurbainger

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3 months ago

I help a lot of clients with the identity shift they need to level up in their business, be they a journalist, writer, or creative business owner (often writing content for their own business, and others).

Often, they can only see a previous version of themselves. One that didn’t have all the skills, or the confidence, or the language to make the bold ask, so they keep playing small. Keep holding themselves back.

A great mentor will reflect you to yourself, as you are today, as well as helping you see opportunity for your future.

It can be quite the revelation. And feel rather vulnerable. Especially when you live in a state of “I’m not good enough” or “I must be getting it wrong.”

So it’s been interesting to realise that I’m going through my own identity shift. My mentor, @therichcoach recently held up the mirror and I realised I’ve been changing for some time, but still relating to an old identity.

I’ve been working with creative business owners and entrepreneurial types for a few years, but my passion for journalism and storytelling has meant that’s largely what I talk about.

I don’t mention I’ve been successfully running my own business since I was 26.

I gloss over all the skills I’ve gained over that time, the mindset growth I’ve needed to have, the body practices I’ve learned in order to release resistance and evolve.

Expect to hear more of that from here on.

And comment below if you relate to this. Where are you in your own evolution?

#mentor #businessmentor #mindset #writing mentorship lifeworkbalance identityshift visibility #confidence taken in Perth, Western Australia by @fleurbainger

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3 months ago