Steven Pressley has revealed he came close to walking away from his role as Dundee manager on 'several' occasions during his first season back in the dugout.
The Dens Park boss admits he might have been sacked 12 months ago had it not been for his relationship with the club's technical director Gordon Strachan.
Pressley kept Dundee sitting in fourth place in the Scottish Premiership on Saturday with a 2-2 draw at home to Rangers, a result which ended the Ibrox club's seven-game winning streak.
Close to walking away
Speaking on Hotline Live, Pressley said: "When I first came into the job I found it really difficult to adapt again. I genuinely mean that - I had absolutely softened.
"Through all my career as a player I was used to the exposure of pressure and then, almost immediately, I went into the dugout. Pressure becomes normal.
"Then I came out of the firing line for five or six years and I definitely softened. So when I returned to football management it was like a whirlwind and I began to think to myself, 'I don't like this!'."
He added: "If I'm honest, last season there were a number of occasions when I thought, 'I don't think I want to do this anymore,'. I did. I had a number of occasions when I considered leaving the post.
"There were several times when I thought, 'Is this really for me now?'."
Gordon Strachan's influence
Pressley believes he would have been axed in November last year had it not been for the influence of Strachan, who once signed him for Celtic.
He said: "When I took the Dundee job one of the real reasons I took it was because of Gordon.
"I think to have a mentor and somebody I could speak to who has been over the course and who has a clear understanding. Someone I can bounce ideas off and someone who supports me.
"There is an argument that, if Gordon hadn't been here, then after results and difficulties maybe last November I might have lost my job if I had been at another club.
"But he stayed strong with us, he kept supporting us, he helped direct us and he spoke frankly about a number of things on a number of occasions. These were really important conversations.
"So he helped me through the initial period and the initial difficult times and I'm very grateful that he's here."
Learning from past mistakes
Pressley admits one of the biggest factors behind his managerial renaissance has been acknowledging the mistakes he made during his earlier years on the sidelines.
He said: "Sometimes as a young manager we can get caught up in thinking that, 'My way is the correct way,'. There's an arrogance about it.
"I was one of those managers who thought that this was the way to play and it's the only way to play. But I've learned there is no right and wrong."
Pressley added: "One of the things that I've really tried to do throughout my career is look at myself and look at how I can improve on a continuous basis.
"I'm an avid reader of books, I have obviously done my degree in leadership and I continuously try to better myself. I'm also a critic of the way I've managed and I always want to improve.
"But I think many of the difficulties that I've had I have really used to try and learn from and become a better person, most importantly. I've worked very hard on that and it's something I try to take into my football management."
Reflecting on his appointment, he said: "When I initially got this job - and rightly so - there were a lot of concerns from the Dundee supporters. But part of the journey is to show the courage to navigate your way through that.
"We've managed to get ourselves in a situation where I think we've made progress but I think there is still a lot of hard work ahead."
