A couple of weeks ago I was gripped by Dr Sarah Ruggins’ incredible journey as she succeeded in her world record endurance cycle ride. Amazingly she cycled the full length of the UK and back in just over 5 days, smashing the previous record. It’s an astonishing feat of persistence, planning, and adaptability, and it got me thinking about some key aspects of being an Agile Delivery Lead that we sometimes need to be reminded of.

We may not be cycling hundreds of miles a day, but most projects are like marathons with tough terrain, unexpected detours, and the occasional flat tyre. Here are some things which Sarah has reminded me of, which I think apply to handling the rest of life too.

Get the right gear and team around you

No serious cyclist would dream of setting off without a bike she trusts and a solid support crew. In delivery, the “kit” is our tooling, rituals, and frameworks. For me, the kit I couldn’t live without are my project plans, tracking spreadsheets, JIRA dashboards, and my trusty paper notepad. But even with the right kit, the team is critical. Having people who we trust, who have the right skills, mindset and experience, is what gets us through in one piece.

Set interim markers

On a multi-day bike ride, the end goal is mammoth – so Sarah will have broken it down into manageable sections: next town, next meal, next sleep. As Delivery Leads, we do the same with milestones and sprints. Smaller goals keep momentum high and give the team space to breathe and recalibrate after each one. This is crucial for keeping up a sustainable pace in the long term, and keeping the delivery team motivated.

Feedback constantly

As an elite athlete, Sarah will be constantly tracking things like her speed, heart rate and calorie intake during a ride – and will adjust as she goes. On projects we collect loads of data through velocity calculations, risk registers, burn-down charts as well as less quantifiable things like team sentiment and morale. We need to prioritise the data that helps us steer and optimise the project. It’s not about drowning in numbers - it’s about staying responsive, gathering the right information and using it to our advantage.

Always be adaptive

Not everything goes to plan – weather changes, legs cramp, a support van breaks down. Just like our delivery plans get ambushed by shifting priorities, bugs, or unexpected scope creep. The trick is adapting without losing sight of the end goal, and constantly reprioritising as needed, so that the most important aspects of delivery are protected.

Celebrate the little wins, especially when it gets tough

We all know the specific situations that really get us down, and we need to have easy and effective strategies to help us keep going when it’s tough and feels impossible. Often we’re the ones who end up setting the culture of the conversation, and being the cheerleaders in our teams - so we need to lead by example and manage ourselves well, especially when the project environment is challenging.

Look after your health

Good physical, mental and emotional health is absolutely key in all endurance sports, and also in managing and delivering projects. If we’re not eating, sleeping and resting well, we’re not going to bring our best selves to work - and our clients, colleagues and families will suffer the negative consequences. It’s a simple thing, but so important!

Train well, and keep learning

Everyone attempting a long-distance road race, was once learning to ride on a kids bike with stabilisers. The same is true in our careers - we start small and go from there. As Delivery Leads we should always be learning, growing, trying out new things, and encouraging others to the same. What are you learning currently (and who from?), and how are you helping to train others up?

Remember that we drive real positive change

As well as setting a new world record, Sarah has raised thousands of pounds for two charities which have community wellbeing and care for the vulnerable at their heart. In our projects we can also have a huge amount of positive impact on people’s experience and on business outcomes. Currently I’m part of a team delivering digitally integrated Community Diagnostic Centres to help combat the long diagnostic backlog, which is such a privilege to be involved in. Look out for the positive changes you’re making in the world, and if you’re struggling to find them, maybe it’s time to pivot to a new project!

To wrap up…

Just to clarify, I’m not planning to cycle across the UK anytime soon. But following Sarah’s journey has reminded me that delivery leadership is about pacing ourselves, supporting each other, and never underestimating the power of small wins and marginal gains on the road to something big.

About the author

I’m Christina Grant, a Delivery Lead with Answer Digital, and have spent most of my career in Health IT project delivery. I’ve worked with national, regional and local health partnerships, and across both the NHS and private sector. I’m a commuter cyclist (non-electric), but have never taken part in a cycling race!