Someone on Quora posted this question:

“What are some of the more popular techniques used by companies to discredit their competitors?”

I replied:

“Your question is wrong on so many levels. Don’t even think it. Karma will get you every time. And if Karma doesn’t bite you on your butt, some hacker will definitely find out that you were the source of the nastiness. There’s a saying ‘He who slings mud loses ground.’ Think about it. Be ethical. It wins every time.”

I thought that taking the high road was a pretty safe position.

Boy, was I wrong!

I got bashed by people who posted comments like:
Business is war. Take no prisioners.
Another person wrote: Are you even in PR?

Well, yes, I’ve been in PR for 30 years. And we have something called professional ethics. It’s a wonderful thing. It lets you know what’s right and what’s wrong. I understand that business schools even teach courses in ethics. How cool is that?

Obviously, these people were weaned on the movies “Wall Street” and “Greed” and probably never heard about the Law of Attraction or co-opetition (cooperation between competitors), or how a rising tide lifts all boats.

All I can say is, if you want to scorch the earth, I’m probably not the PR consultant for you. And that’s fine. I don’t want to work as your publicity consultant either.

On the other hand, if you want to help people and make the world a better place, if you believe a rising tide lifts all boats then I might be the publicity coach or PR consultant you’ve been looking for.