Advice to Young Occultists
(Paraphrased article with good suggestions for beginners, original version written by Richard Romanowski in 1996.)
Work several times a day, work every day. Frequent work - whether it's meditative, ritual, talismanic, whatever - frequent work gets results.
Read critically. When possible, don't pay for what you read, since you can spend thousands of dollars and accumulate bulky libraries without learning much. Read a lot. Question a lot. Doubt a lot.
Examine many people, likewise critically. Hundreds of people may claim to have power, wisdom, connections, whatever. Magick is all too often a game of make-believe - I believe in your power if you will believe in mine. This sort of childishness wastes a lot of time if you associate with other magicians, so be on your guard for it.
Magick will often mix up with the shady elements of society: bohemians, criminals, etc. Use your head. Be suspicious of anyone who does crime for thrills: such people are generally stupid and clumsy. Be respectful of people who are good at doing crimes: they are dangerous.
Magick may very well drive you insane. There's nothing wrong with this: sanity is very overrated, and you may well choose to go mad in the way of your own preference. More power to you: but watch out and don't let anyone lock you up. Madness can be powerful: just take precautions. Magick may ruin your emotional life and subject you to more powerful emotions than you've ever had before. It's ok, just ride the wave. Scoff at people who claim that you've messed up your karma and you have to give up occultism. That sort loves to say that one must give up because they give up so often in their own work.
The best magic is often the sort that you have within you already, that you believe in and feel comfortable with by instinct. Often you may find that you were a great magician all along, but you needed to experiment with things that weren't your style in order to convince yourself that your instincts were right all along. Very often I have tried something new, exotic, and well-reputed only to discover it didn't work for me because I had something better inside myself all along.