Liam Rosenior said he “won’t get carried away” after Hull returned to the play-off places with a 3-1 win over Stoke.
First-half goals from Aaron Connolly (his fifth of the season) and Adama Traore handed the Tigers control just after the half-hour mark.
And the hosts’ poor day was compounded by the fact that Regan Slater’s shot deflected off Linden Gooch and into his own net.
The returning Andre Vidigal found a late consolation for the Potters, but it was too little, too late as their winless run stretched to five league games.
Hull went through their seventh game unbeaten, claiming their third successive away win in the Championship for the first time since 2013.
“I’m very happy,” said Rosenior, who marked the 50th game win of his coaching career.
“It’s always nice when you win away, and even more nice than just winning is the performance.
“Everything was excellent; we showed energy and confidence in the game in possession and were difficult to break down.
“The signs are really good, but the only statistic that matters to me is where we finish at the end of the season.
“It’s great to get a win, but it has to be towards something so I don’t get carried away.
“We are in a good place; we don’t need to focus on results because they are the result of our performances and they have been consistent this season.”
Goal scorer Connolly and his team-mate Jean-Michel Sery had an argument at half-time, but Rosenior paid tribute to their spirit.
He added: “They argued and want to win. I’ve been asking them about this the whole year I’ve been living here.
“You need to be demanding of each other; they quarreled, then hugged, made up and became best friends again.
“You need to quarrel with each other from time to time because it makes you better and brings you success; it’s perfect and that’s exactly the mentality I need.”
Meanwhile, it was another disappointing day for Stoke as they edged closer to the relegation zone.
“I think the best team won. Tactically we were the worst since I’ve been here,” admitted manager Alex Neil.
“You look at the game today and you think either our formation wasn’t good enough, or we didn’t commit, or a combination of both.
“We didn’t have enough faith to do it today, and when you don’t have enough faith, it looks like a dog’s dinner.
“We showed a lack of confidence – this is the first time I’ve seen that from them this season – and it disappointed me.
“I never doubt what the fans want to do, whether they want to boo or express their disappointment.
“They are here to support their team and see them win; if they don’t win, especially in modern football, it’s either one extreme or the other.
“If you win the game, you move up. If you lose a game you get relegated, that’s the nature of football now.
“How they express their opinions, I have no views on that; I just want the team to perform well and try to win.
“We need one win to get some guys in the mood and then hopefully we can put together a decent game.”