Paulo Sousa was a "proud" man after a Dexter Blackstock brace secured him his first win as QPR boss against Charlton at Loftus Road.
The former Portugal midfielder could have been forgiven for wondering what he had let himself in for as he watched his new side lose 3-0 at Watford on Saturday.
But Rangers bounced back courtesy of Blackstock's eighth and ninth goals of the season to end a run of three straight defeats with a 2-1 win that leaves Charlton in the relegation zone.
"It's not very easy when a team loses 3-0 and to change mentally you have to be very strong," said Sousa.
"I don't understand why Charlton are in the position they are in because they have great players and play very well.
"So I am proud of my players because they are working very hard with a lot of changes. They are accepting my ideas and they believe in me."
Sousa, the sixth man in charge of Rangers in little over a year, received warm applause when he was introduced before kick-off, although Loftus Road's lowest league crowd of the season turned out to greet the new boss.
He was punching the air in delight after 17 minutes of his first home game when Damiano Tommasi ambled down the left wing and crossed for Blackstock to slot past Nicky Weaver.
Therry Racon's first goal in English football looked to have secured the beleaguered Addicks a point when he tucked away Hamuer Boazza's cross on the half-hour.
Linvoy Primus and Mark Hudson went close to giving Charlton the lead, but it was Blackstock who had the last word when he headed in Hogan Ephraim's cross with 10 minutes remaining.
Defeat was hard to swallow for Charlton's caretaker boss Phil Parkinson, at the helm following Alan Pardew's departure on Saturday.
The Addicks are now without a win in nine games, although they showed a vast improvement from the 5-2 home mauling by Sheffield United which finally did for Pardew.
"I'm disappointed with the result, but I asked for a reaction and I got it," said Parkinson.
"But when you are at the bottom things don't go for you. Everything we asked of them they did and I am so disappointed for them.
"They are as honest a bunch of players as I have ever known in football and they are hurting.
"It was a night when their striker had two chances and he put them both in - you have to make them count - and we had chances but did not put them in, and that was the difference."
Parkinson, a former manager himself with Colchester and Hull, will be in line for the permanent role if he can drag Charlton clear of the drop zone.
But he added: "I'm not saying anything about that. I was just focused on tonight, and then on training and on our game with Southampton on Saturday."