It is true what you say. I always have a simple rule when I do my designs. Apart from the obvious NO, NO's which you should not even make by bona-fide mistake, if you have your visitors in mind as first priority and your visitors get value from what you deliver on your site, then you can't go wrong. Not that I say SEO is unimportant, it is just that it should not be the alpha and omega of your website (and the same goes for Google).

Ok now you may ask, if this is your approach, why are you bothered with Google? It is merely a case of Google can't be ignored at all. Google is a strong source of valuable visitors for many sites and if there is merit in changing your designing habits, then I believe it is something you should concider.

Thanks for the replies so far. Confirmed most of my suspicions.