Our greatest limitations are often the stories we believe about ourselves
By Brittany McCormick
I had the privilege of appearing on the cover of Rolling Inspiration. It was an incredible honour, but it also made me think about something much deeper.
We spend so much of our lives asking one question, “How do people see me?”. Perhaps the more important question is “How do I see myself?”.
Every one of us carries something that feels heavy. For some, it is a disability. For others, it is grief, anxiety, financial hardship, rejection, self-doubt or the feeling that life has left them behind.
The challenge itself may be different, but the emotions are often the same. We all know what it feels like to wonder whether we are enough.
Society has a way of defining people by what they cannot do. What if we started defining ourselves by what we are willing to try?
Choosing courage
That question became the foundation of Core of Courage, a fundraising campaign I began on 1 June 2026 in support of the QuadPara Association of South Africa (QASA) Employment Programme. The goal is to raise R60 000 to help people with disabilities build careers, discover their potential and access opportunities that many people take for granted.
Every single day, for seven months, I am completing 100 sit-ups and a 20-minute plank. People often ask me why. The answer has never been about exercise. It is about choice.
Every morning I choose to show up, whether I feel strong or weak, motivated or exhausted. Because courage is rarely a single life-changing moment. It is a collection of ordinary decisions that slowly change who we become.
Preparation for the challenge
Before this journey began, I wanted to make sure I was approaching it responsibly. When I first asked my biokineticist whether my body could safely handle the challenge, the answer was no. Without proper preparation, I risked causing harm. That could have been the end of the story.
Instead, it became the beginning. After weeks of preparation and guidance, the answer changed. Not because the challenge became easier, but because I became more prepared. That lesson extends far beyond fitness.
So many of us mistake preparation for delay. We think we are standing still, when in reality we are becoming ready. Growth is often quiet. It happens before anyone notices. It happens when nobody is applauding. It happens in the discipline of showing up, one day at a time.
I am incredibly grateful to have Estie Biokinetics walking this journey alongside me. Their professional guidance ensures that every workout is completed safely and reminds me that asking for help is not weakness. It is wisdom.
Facing the fear
One of the biggest misconceptions about courage is that courageous people are fearless. They are not. Fear still exists. Pain still exists. Uncertainty still exists. The difference is that courage refuses to let those things make the final decision.
There have been days during Core of Courage when my body has ached. Days when I have questioned whether I could complete another session. Days when progress felt invisible.
Those are the days that matter most, because life is rarely transformed by the days everything goes according to plan. It is transformed by the days we choose not to give up.
Perhaps that is why this campaign has become so much more than a fundraiser. Yes, it is about raising R60 000. Yes, it is about creating career opportunities through QASA’s Employment Programme.
But it is also about challenging the way we think about ourselves and about one another. What would happen if we looked beyond limitations and started recognising potential? What if employers hired ability before assumption?
What if communities celebrated contribution before circumstance? What if we stopped asking people what they cannot do and started asking what they dream of becoming?
The world changes when opportunity replaces judgement. That is the future I hope Core of Courage helps create.
Whether you live with a disability or not, I hope this journey reminds you of one simple truth: Your life is not defined by your hardest day. Your future is not determined by someone else’s opinion. Your greatest strength may be waiting on the other side of the decision you are afraid to make today. We may never get to choose the challenges life places in front of us, but we do get to choose how we respond.
Sometimes, the smallest act of courage (making one phone call, asking for help, applying for the job, beginning again, believing in yourself one more time) is enough to change the course of your life.
If Core of Courage inspires even one person to take that first step, then this journey is already achieving far more than I ever imagined. If you would like to be part of creating opportunities for people with disabilities to build meaningful careers, I invite you to support or share the campaign: https://www.backabuddy.co.za/campaign/core-of-courage.
Because courage doesn’t belong to a select few. It belongs to every person who decides that their circumstances will not have the final word.
Brittany speaks more about the campaign with Christian Life Testimonies on Youtube. Watch the full interview here:
