Meet April Wakefield-Spikener

We caught up with the brilliant and insightful April Wakefield-Spikener a few weeks ago and have shared our conversation below.

April, thank you so much for joining us. You are such a positive person and it’s something we really admire and so we wanted to start by asking you where you think your optimism comes from?

My optimism comes from knowing how God has moved in my life. The way he has always come through for me. I’ve seen it so much, that when times are hard, or if I’m going through something mentally or emotionally painful, I trust that it is for my good, and that whatever I am learning through the obstacle, will be purposeful.

Great, so let’s take a few minutes and cover your story. What should folks know about you and what you do?

I do many things but I am a poet at my core, and have naturally come into coaching and encouraging others as it relates to life. What I like most about my creative work is that it is authentic, freeing, and people feel seen and understood because of it. It’s like I’m doing the work for the greater good of humanity, and I can’t imagine anything that feels better than that.

Looking back, what do you think were the three qualities, skills, or areas of knowledge that were most impactful in your journey? What advice do you have for folks who are early in their journey in terms of how they can best develop or improve on these?

Three things that have been super important on my journey are faith, awareness, and consistency. Faith, because when you are going through hard times, or elevating, things will get rough. You must believe in a power higher than yourself in order to keep the faith. God’s presence is why even when I feel like I’m losing something or losing at something, I know there is still hope. Awareness of others and self-awareness are both things that I practice. I study myself consistently, because I am determined to know all of the layers that make up who I am. I read about my personality, and the makings up of me as often as I can. It is by learning about myself and coming into my own complete truth, that I am truly able to understand that no two people are the same. As a result, I have made it a point to create a space where people don’t have to fit neatly into any box when they are around me. I want my people free to be who they are, without judgement. Lastly, consistency. Perfection is impossible, but we can become excellent at something as a result of practicing it, repeatedly. The areas that I am most consistent in, are the ones where I see the most results. I have also learned to always give myself grace. I don’t have to be superwoman, ever.

We’ve all got limited resources, time, energy, focus etc – so if you had to choose between going all in on your strengths or working on areas where you aren’t as strong, what would you choose?

I think it is important that we know our strengths. That is how we identify what our natural gifts are. We should strengthen them at every opportunity, because that is how we will contribute to the world in the most authentic way. The thing is, it takes work to truly learn yourself, but in that process, we learn both where we are weak and where we are strong. When I initially started my business, April Olivia, I wanted to write poetry inside of cards and I wanted to own a greeting card business. I ended up learning to design the cards, because what is a card without a pretty cover? Designing is not my strength though. It took work, and stress, and effort to grow. Writing poetry, however, is completely natural. For me, it doesn’t take “work.” It’s as natural as breathing. I am grateful to know I can do both, but also fully aware now, that the natural gift serves the world in a greater way. Yes, people love the pretty cards, but the poetry makes them feel seen. The poetry makes them feel less alone. The poetry makes them feel close to me. And that is much more powerful.

None of that is to say don’t try new things and grow in new areas. We should always following the internal push, or pull. Sometimes taking small steps in what appears to be a “random direction,” will lead you right to who you are truly meant to be in this world. We are all here to give something that no one else can.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://www.aprilolivia.com
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/aprilthepoet
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/aprilthepoet
• Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/aprilolivia