At the office today, we were having a conversation at lunch about startups and how to make them successful. The discussion reminded me of a question folks have been asking me a lot over the last year as the economy has been cratering and B rounds have been all but nonexistent: how can you get your startup to a successful exit?

I've been saving this quote since before we were acquired by HP in 2007 but now seems like a fitting time for it:

As to methods there may be a million and then some, but principles are few. The man who grasps principles can successfully select his own methods. The man who tries methods, ignoring principles, is sure to have trouble.
— Ralph Waldo Emerson

It is the same with startups: the main principle to grasp is that building value for the enduser is the best way to be successful. There are far too many gyrations to do anything but, despite what all of the entrepreneurs, investors, and advisors who are fooled by randomness might claim about how to win.

Build something people love that solves a hard technical problem in the process and something good is likely to happen most of the time. Outside of that it doesn't matter which development methodology you use, which viral loops you bake into your service, or even what your customer acquisition economics look like. These are but methods to be tweaked once you know you've built real value.