See Gordon Hayward's "Your House, Your Garden" or "Garden Paths." He uses paths as a major garden element, basically because you have to design for getting from one place to another. The major path, bigger and emphasized, would be to your french door, and a secondary path to the original door. If the space in front of the original door is for parking, the hedge before the french door hides it from view, which isn't what you want(in the photo).

Anyone please add to or change this - my main thought is to name Gordon Hayward.

Here is your photo where everyone can see it:
{{gwi:23145}}

Is that the main path that visitors use when approaching your house?

PROBLEM:
1) Current path seems to lead visitors straight to the gabled door.
2) There is nothing to draw visitors' eyes to the left. Their natural inclination is to walk up the steps because that is where the path takes them. Even if they happen to look to the left and notice the patio, if it looks like a cozy private place, it is natural for people to assume that the French doors there are also a private family entrance.

SOLUTION:
1) Eliminate the path going to the gabled door, and fill in the area in with landscaping plants that no one will want to walk over or through (evergreen shrubbery, perfect lawn, etc.).
2) Create an opening in the bushes or hedge that is hiding your patio. The opening should be at least wide enough for to people to comfortably pass through while walking side by side. Build a wide path leading to the opening. Add a gabled arbor at the end of the path that people will step through in order to enter your patio. For additional privacy, you can add a half gate to the arbor, perhaps with a welcome sign. Make sure that once people enter the patio, they have a clear line of vision to the French doors and there are no obstacles (furniture, potted plants) blocking the path to the door. You may need to add a large welcome mat, potted plants flanking the doors, or a decorative flag to make it stand out more.
3) If the above doesn't work, remove the gable from the old door, and paint that door white to match the siding. That will make the door blend into the siding, making it look more like a secondary entrance.

Multiple elements in this view direct the eye right to the "wrong" door:

The columnar oak(?)

The limbed up pine(?)

The path

The color and size of the gable

The color of the door

Redirect visitors by removing/modifying some of these, upstaging them with other features that redirect traffic (as suggested above).

What they said.

And I would add, althoug I cannot tell exactly what lies between the hedge and wherever the French door is, that you can still maintain screening or privacy--you just have to block the path and view to the other door and invite and direct to the preferred door. So you don't have to have a straight-on view and path into your patio. It can even be cool to have guests walk up and turn a corner or 2 and then there is the door--but they have to feel like they are supposed to do that, so not spooky-forbidding enter at your own risk thing. To achieve that while still maintaining some screening plantings, if that is part of what you are trying to do,you might use entry/door-type surrogates at points along the way--examples would be arches, simple gates, posts, lamps, rustic signs--things that send the message, I am expecting you here, and then here.... You won't need as much of this if you are able to just open up the path and view, however.

I am totally making this up, but I've seen pictures...

I'm thinking that there might be as-yet unstipulated constraints that would prevent doing the most obvious things like making the path head straight into the new door. Maybe that would erode too much privacy from the patio. What do you all think about making an "L"-shaped arbor with a peaked roof line to mimic the doorway behind it--it would have a solid back (lattice or decorative panels or whatever)and an open lefthand side to get visitors to make the critical 90 degree turn to the left--two panels, one corner post. Once on their way, other features like gateposts or whatever could encourage visitors to continue straight to the desired door. Another possible benefit is that this solution would allow retention of most of the existing plant material.

I probably would do some work on the path to the desired door and post a sign on the small gabled door saying "Servants Entrance".

I've got a front door with your standard sidewalk and stoop. And I have another door that's a mudroom (converted breezeway) that's recessed and downplayed behind a some shrubs. The proper entrance is obvious (UPS and salesmen always get it right). But what door do most people use? They go to the breezeway. I can't explain it. People somehow don't think the "formal" entrance applies to them, I guess.

When guiding the public, you have to hit them over the head with a ton of bricks. It's even worse when there's built in ambiguity as in your case. Think runway lights, big flashing signs, a path with arrows painted on it. Of course not literally. But figuratively. Make every feature point to the correct door.

Just some thoughts about any arbors, opening in hedges, etc. When I was a teenager, I was stung multiple times by bees as I walked through an opening in a hedge. I would be very wary of doing that to get to anybody's house! Whatever you decide, make sure that it is friendly. Poll the people who frequent your house since you don't want to make it uncomfortable for them. Also, a lot of people find it very uncomfortable to walk through an arbor or hedge if they can't see what is on the other side (think criminal, dog, nude sunbather, etc.). So, rather than just being functional, your solution needs to be friendly and comfortable for your visitors.

...unfortunately, I can't tell you how to do that and still maintain your current coziness. Maybe you need to make a cozy private area in front of the gabled door, screening it out and make your new patio and french doors more open.

How about a low, ornamental fence to direct visitors to the left? You could plant the other side to make a small courtyard garden in front of the gabled door.

Whatever happened to the OP?

Above. A barrier, such as a low fence, wall, or drystack (neatly) would amplify a new path orientation, and steer visitors to the right direction. The addition of a gateway (could even have an ornamental gate of choice standing perpetually open), positioned so that entering it leads to the correct entrance, could give another strong clue to visitors.

Vicki's got it figured out. Seems to me this would be the perfect problem to look at on a plan, a drawing, such as pls8xx provided in the "grounded" thread.

great ideas !!! Thanks. I will keep you posted once I move in and start the hardscape for the new walkway.

Would lattice or trellis over the front door stoop and fast growing vines be too tacky for a start and then divert the path at the same time?

1-2-3 Quick fix while you decide on something permanent:

1-Paint--paint the gabled door the same color as the house.
2-Pots--put large potted plants (or just pretty pots?) directly in front of your newly drab door so you'd have to step on them to get in the house. ie. block the door.
3-Pavers--drop pavers on the ground that make a path directly to the preferred entrance. Pick light or white colored pavers. People like to follow paths.

If this works, consider installing a permanent walkway to the preferred door and removing the steps to the gabled door.

I was the username movingwest, the original poster. Now that i am here and see the garden in full bloom, I am amazed at the beauty of the landscaping to that funky gabled door. SO I am leaving it as the primary entrance. All I need to do it add some lauurel hedge to the right of the path. and add one more step to make the grade more simple to walk down. There are japanese maples and rock walls and a rock just asking for bamboo water drip, lilies, violets, daphne and amazing larch trees, Wow. sometimes you just have to wait and see.

SO all I did was add a doorknocker out of patina green/blue copper. its an acorn on an oak leaf and added a copper beech wreath. hung a woodstock chime and its really quite heavenly.

The back yard is more amazing than I thought too. We'll add a little stream waterfall and pond next to the patio. I am going to try to stay with native plants (oregon) for the back yard.