diff --git a/docs/howto/deployment/modwsgi.txt b/docs/howto/deployment/modwsgi.txt
index e873006af0..0db3c10cfb 100644
--- a/docs/howto/deployment/modwsgi.txt
+++ b/docs/howto/deployment/modwsgi.txt
@@ -47,7 +47,9 @@ mentioned in the second part of ``WSGIScriptAlias`` and add::
 
 If your project is not on your ``PYTHONPATH`` by default you can add::
 
-    sys.path.append('/usr/local/django')
+    path = '/usr/local/django'
+    if path not in sys.path:
+        sys.path.append(path)
 
 just above the final ``import`` line to place your project on the path. Remember to
 replace 'mysite.settings' with your correct settings file, and '/usr/local/django'