Making Your Own Path

What does this phrase mean? We hear it all the time from our parents, our teachers, our mentors. "Make your own path in life, do what's right for you." But what do they mean really? They couldn't possibly mean do whatever it takes to make you happy, regardless of the consequences. That imparts both selfishness and irresponsibility, two traits characterizing the exact antithesis of mentoring and guiding someone. So what do they mean? I don't believe in destiny, so making your own path strikes a ringing chord with me. My life is governed by my actions and the consequences therein. I write my own story, I hold the pen. There is no set path that I have to follow, no ultimate fate. Now, that could just be in part due to the personal belief that if I do in fact possess free will---which I believe I do---then no being, supreme or otherwise, can control my life. There is no such thing as fate when a being possess free will for the basic fact that one can simply say, "no, I reject your path". So making your own path must entitle making your own choices, being in control of your life. Because of this, making your own path is accompanied by a vast amount of personal responsibility. We cannot truly be in control of our own lives, cannot truly carve our own path if we do not take responsibility for our actions and the effects they have on the world around us. With action comes consequence; with choice comes responsibility.
So how do we do what's right for us? I guess that depends on what we believe as well. Although I don't believe in destiny, I do believe in purpose. We are not just a random jumble of cells, a mutation in the genetic helix. We all have a purpose in life. For some, it is to lead. For some, it is create. I believe my purpose is to provide a helping hand to those I encounter on my path. To help them grow as a person, to "be all they can be". But how far does this hand reach? Does it stop when a fork in the road appears? And what do I do at the fork? One path is to do what's right for me, one path is to do what's right for them. But they are not labeled. Are they the same path? How do I know which path is for me? I must make a choice when I am bound so strongly to another. Where do our paths separate, if at all? How do you know when two roads are parallel in their flight for the future? How to proceed forward when there are no regrets for the past, but no certainty for the future? Alas, but how pleasant it seems sometimes to have a choice made for you. Unfortunately, life is not structured that way for we all must choose our own ways.

How do you explain what you should never have been able to feel?