Welcome to Jess Foley Communications
Image by Lanie Sims Photography.
Before we start talking about your story, let me tell you mine. It’s got planes, yachts, lions, bears, an unlucky miss with a beloved Sir, visa woes, and a twist I didn’t see coming.
Stories are a funny thing. We’ve all got one, but when was the last time you told yours?
Maybe you’ve been told to ‘get to the point’ one too many times, or been outdone by another, louder story. Or maybe there’s a bit of heartache in yours, and sharing it feels scary.
Because that’s the thing about stories—they require us to be vulnerable.
But the reward for that vulnerability is a connection. With a colleague, a customer, or just a new friend.
So if you’re thinking about trusting me with your story, I think it’s only fair you know mine.
Soaking up the sun in Cinque Terre, Italy, on top of the world at Inis Mór, Ireland, and of course, the Arc de Triomphe, Paris. © My own personal photo album
Perennially restless and deeply curious about the world outside my small town (Northam, WA), I started hatching my get out of town plans young—eventually leaving for the big city (Perth) a few months shy of 18 to start university.
(Truthfully I tried once before this, but that’s a story for another time).
Arriving in the city with big plans to become a human rights lawyer*, it wasn’t long before I realised my true love was writing—and that I was far too impatient to sit through 5+ years of law school with a big wide world out there waiting.
I chucked law in, got a job in one of Fremantle’s busy cafes, and saved enough to get on my first solo flight overseas within the year.
Four weeks became six, which became eight, which almost became forever—before I flew home to finish a new degree in media and communications (and political science and international relations… I couldn’t quite let the law go completely).
Still restless for the outside world, I raced through my degree as soon as possible, graduated, and was on the next flight to Sydney. This time I wouldn’t be home for several years.
*If you like reading as a kid, law is the default career every adult in the room will tell you you’re made for.
One of many balmy evenings on the world’s greatest harbour aboard the HMAS TravMedia © My own personal photo album
With dreams of becoming a hard-hitting news reporter, I fell into a role at TravMedia, the travel industry’s global media network connecting thousands of journalists and PR professionalS.
It was the most challenging role of my career, but the rewards were big. And it opened my eyes to a career and possibilities I’d have never imagined.
I spent the next three years publishing dozens of press releases a day, helping journalists find sources for stories, linking PR managers with the country’s top editors, and attending a new launch, awards night, or just plain old party every week.
Falling in love with Sydney and its glittering harbour was a given (thanks to many an evening spent on the HMAS TravMedia with our clients and media friends), but I also fell in love with the Australian food and travel media community.
If I thought I’d loved TravMedia, the world’s best job awaited me next. © My own personal photo album
Sydney’s buzz almost hooked me for good, but that restlessness for what else might be out there eventually returned. This time I was pulled to a city that felt like home immediately—London.
Again, I fell into the world’s best job at London Zoo where I spent two years sharing the Zoo’s cast of wild, loveable characters with our members, retracing the steps of Charles Darwin, Winnie the Bear, and Harry Potter, and accidentally dodging Sir David Attenborough in the hallways on more than one occasion (still mad about it).
I’d probably never have left. But Brexit had other ideas.
Unable to secure a visa extension, I was left floundering. Where to now? Singapore, Amsterdam, maybe New York? All were cities I toyed with.
But—catching me completely unawares—I suddenly felt an inescapable pull to come home.
How did I ever stay away so long? © My own personal photo album
What followed were some of the hardest years of my life.
I worked a few different jobs, languished on my parents’ couch, reignited old friendships, remembered old pockets of Perth I’d always loved and found a bunch of new ones. Escaped to Margs at any opportunity. Took myself off to Broome for a much-needed break somewhere in 2021.
Day by day, I fell back in love with this big, wide, beautiful state of ours and four years on, that restlessness hasn’t returned. Now, I can’t imagine myself anywhere else.
I’m thrilled to bring everything I’ve learnt in my storied career to you. WA wouldn’t be WA without the boutique accommodation providers, scenic flight operators, cultural guides, wineries, foodies and other experience-makers that make it what it is.
There’s a reason I wanted to be a human rights lawyer. I’m every bit as passionate about people and their stories—and that everyone get the chance to have theirs heard—as I was then.
TELL ME — WHAT’S YOUR STORY?
If you’d like to talk about how I can help you tell your story and share it with the masses, book a chat here free of charge or shoot me a line at contact@jessfoley.au.
Or maybe you’re just a fellow explorer, WA lover, foodie or vinophile? I’m always looking to expand my community so send me an email or find me over on LinkedIn or the ‘gram, I’d love to meet you.
