Malky Mackay has urged his Ross County side to be proactive rather than reactive in their pursuit of a first Premiership win.
The Staggies are without a victory from their opening nine matches, which has seen them slip to the bottom of the table.
Livingston, who are four points ahead, are their next opponents in a crucial Victoria Park encounter this weekend.
County are aiming to end a run of three straight losses, having gone down to Motherwell, Dundee United and St Mirren in recent weeks.
In each of those games, the Staggies have gone behind before going on to enjoy a dominant spell in the game – only to come away empty-handed.
Mackay is calling for his side to show the same intent from the start when Livi make the trip north.
He said: “If you look at the last two games, it has been the second half of both where we’ve been really dominant and created a lot.
“But that’s come off the back of going behind, which is not what we want.
“If Saturday had continued on in the manner of the first half, it would be one where I’d be thinking I need to intervene because there’s a lack of belief.
“But when you look at the second half, again, plus 80 minutes worth of the Motherwell game, the whole second half against Dundee United, you see how dominant we can be against opposition either around us or above us.
“It is about all of us taking that collective responsibility to say we all need to be slightly better. If we are, the wins from it are going to be massive.
“If we get this right, we are going to go and do well here.”
Staggies must convert stats into victories
Despite the lack of recent form, Mackay has been encouraged by his side’s displays.
Although he acknowledges statistics count for little without results, he feels his players can use the recent data analysis to show they are heading in the right direction.
He added: “We had a long chat about how they’ve approached the last three games especially.
“We have to cut out individual errors and we have to be clinical.
“We created 20 attempts at goal, 20 crosses and 56% possession against St Mirren.
“If we focus on the process rather than the outcome, that’s what we are creating.
“In one sense, you have to be wary of stats – they don’t win you games.
“But I’m showing them evidence of what they’re doing against these teams. I want them to keep believing in what they’re doing on out on the pitch and the information we’re giving them.
“If they keep playing like that over a long period, people aren’t going to make howlers every week.”
Mackay feels his squad must show an increased belief in themselves, adding: “Over the course of the campaign, I want them to stick to that strong belief in how they’re playing, and how they’re approaching things.
“They’re a really good group of players in terms of what we get from them every day in training. They give us application and work-rate, and the will to be selfless and work for each other.
“That’s something you don’t always have in dressing rooms. There are times when there are selfish players and individuals who cause problems in dressing rooms.
“This is a terrific group of boys. I just want them to have that little bit more belief in themselves – the amount of belief I have in them.
“If they can apply themselves like that, they’ll be okay.”
