Meet Dr. Sylvia Lafair, PhD
Founder of Creative Energy Options (CEOInc.) and the world’s leading authority in Pattern-Aware Leadership Development, Top Global Leadership Guru, and award-winning author of Don’t Bring It To Work.
My Story: Understanding the Patterns That Shape Us
Searching for answers has always been part of who I am. From an early age, I noticed how people often repeated the same frustrations, made the same mistakes, and lived out familiar stories without recognizing the patterns behind them. I saw it in families, neighborhoods, schools, and even in the books and films I loved.
That curiosity deepened when I was 14 and lost my father to a sudden heart attack. The root cause was constant workplace conflict and the stress he carried throughout his career. Determined to understand what had happened, I began a lifelong search for answers.
What I discovered changed everything: unresolved family patterns don't stay at home—they follow us into the workplace, influencing leadership behavior, communication, and organizational culture. That realization became the foundation of my life's work.
The Discovery Behind Pattern Transformation
Over decades of research and experience, I uncovered a powerful truth: the recurring challenges leaders and teams face are rarely random. Hidden emotional and cultural patterns drive the way people communicate, react under pressure, and handle conflict.
These invisible patterns can quietly undermine trust, collaboration, and performance while increasing stress and burnout. Yet they can also be transformed.
Through my work in leadership development, conflict resolution, and organizational culture, I help individuals and teams recognize the patterns that no longer serve them and replace them with healthier, more productive ways of leading and working together.
Because lasting change doesn't come from fixing symptoms—it comes from transforming the patterns beneath them.
Liberating Teams and Leadership
Today, my mission is simple and deeply personal: to prepare, liberate, and empower leaders and teams to thrive.
I am committed to helping organizations build resilient cultures, strengthen communication, and create workplaces where people can succeed without sacrificing their health, relationships, or joy.
Every executive coaching engagement, leadership program, and team transformation initiative I lead is rooted in one purpose: ensuring that no one loses a loved one to the devastating effects of unresolved conflict and chronic workplace stress.
Because success should never come at the expense of well-being—and because when we transform hidden patterns, we transform the future of leadership itself.
Read Dr. Sylvia's columns in INC.com and The National Business Journals
More About CEOptions, Inc.
A Focus on the Workplace
Dr. Sylvia Lafair challenges the status quo of workplace relationships and leadership. She believes the patterns that shape our relationships, at work and in life, have a profound impact on organizational culture and team success.
By encouraging leaders to think differently, Sylvia helps organizations transform communication, strengthen collaboration, and create healthier, more productive workplaces.
Our Approach to Leadership and Workplace Culture
At Creative Energy Options, our team has spent decades uncovering the hidden patterns that influence workplace relationships and organizational culture. Understanding why people respond the way they do has transformed how we think, coach, consult, and design leadership development programs that create lasting change.
Our Insights Into Workplace Patterns
We've discovered that recurring behavior patterns are often the missing link behind workplace conflict, office politics, absenteeism, declining productivity, and other organizational challenges. By identifying these hidden dynamics, we help leaders and teams create healthier workplace relationships and stronger, more resilient cultures.
Our Proven Pattern Breakthrough Method
Our proprietary Pattern Aware® approach sets Creative Energy Options apart from traditional coaching and leadership development programs. By helping leaders and teams move beyond recurring frustrations, we create lasting transformation. Our award-winning programs continue to be recognized for their impact on workplace culture, communication, and organizational success.
Our Commitment to Transforming Workplace Relationships
We believe that with the right preparation, leaders and teams can develop a deeper understanding of workplace relationships and organizational dynamics. Through this awareness, organizations can strengthen communication, elevate performance, and achieve new levels of success, collaboration, and fulfillment.
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A Legacy of Leadership and Global Influence
Inspiring Audiences
Known for her engaging storytelling and practical insights, Sylvia Lafair helps audiences understand the hidden patterns that shape workplace relationships and organizational culture. Blending humor with real-world examples, she delivers actionable strategies that leaders can apply immediately—both at work and at home. Sylvia has spoken nationally for leading organizations including SHRM, Lockheed Martin, Novartis, and Google.
Transforming Leadership
As a recognized expert in leadership development and organizational culture, Sylvia Lafair has advised Fortune 100 companies, family businesses, nonprofits, and entrepreneurs around the world. Her experiential approach to executive coaching and change management helps leaders reduce workplace conflict, strengthen collaboration, and increase productivity. Sylvia believes that prepared leaders create healthier cultures where people and organizations can thrive.
Global Leadership Experiences
Sylvia Lafair and her partner Herb Kaufman have led executive groups around the world through their Leadership in Action™ program, blending leadership development with immersive, real-world experiences. Participants have hiked the Inca Trail to Machu Picchu, shared meals in the Amazon rainforest, and even bungee jumped in New Zealand.
Their global work spans South Africa, Europe, and South America, along with time at Plum Village with Zen master Thich Nhat Hanh, travel to China, study in an ashram in India, and wildlife immersion in the bush across Africa.
These experiences reflect their belief that leadership transformation happens through direct, immersive experience in diverse environments.
Thought Leadership in Action
Sylvia Lafair is a lifelong “what if” thinker, bringing curiosity and discovery into every book, speech, and leadership program she creates. Her award-winning book Don’t Bring It to Work introduced groundbreaking insights into how family patterns shape workplace behavior and leadership dynamics.
Building on her background as a family therapist, Sylvia pioneered the exploration of how personal history influences organizational culture. Today, she helps leaders and teams improve cooperation, increase productivity, and create healthier workplaces with reduced stress and higher performance.
