Choosing our paths is something we are willing to do, something that comes deep within our soul. The key is that our occult path is a reflection of who we are. As you come into contact with material, it will either attract you, leave you indifferent or repel you. Sometimes your conclusions will be genuine, and other times you will simply be attracted to what sounds cool and repelled by what demands moire work or sounds boring because you haven't looked deeper. There will probably be some trial and error, but over time you will notice a pattern as far as what is more or less meaningful for you. You will connect the dots and focus on what you feel is more right for you.
The challenge is that all occult paths are boring at some point or another, because we are addicted to not changing. It's like going to the gym. You have to keep going if you are going to get stronger, but at some point you will feel like procrastinating and maybe give up. Sticking with it usually depends on how strong your dream is. Just thinking occultism is cool isn't enough. The results are cool, but getting there can be hard, thankless and can seem endless work with no results at times. But if you discover that dream then it will keep you going. That dream is your path. You are already on it, and have already started.
How about sharing your views my friends, about your different paths and how things lead you to choosing various paths?
I understand what you mean about being addicted to not changing. It takes work, but it also takes challenging beliefs we have because beliefs can stop us from growing. However, in magic there are often easy and hard ways to reach the same result. Some people choose the hard way that requires more practice and research because they like having more fine tuned control among other reasons. I'll admit I've put off learning the hard things because alternatives seemed more approachable.
When people ask "What's your path?" I think of religion, rules, routine, and labels. Some embrace this and like to define themselves, that's perfectly ok. My path can't be summed up under one label. It's left hand path in the sense that my own spiritual development and wellbeing are top priority but also right hand path in that I like helping and avoid causing unnecessary loss to others.
I see people claim to be all sorts of paths on here yet seem clueless when I ask them about it. A better way for people to go about this is say "I take inspiration from..." or "I'm currently studying..." that way it absolves them of any accusations of appropriating from people more established in those paths. I think people should have reasons for following a path such as its teachings being supported by their experiences, not jump on a bandwagon because its cool then follow the directives because it says to.
