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The games come thick and fast in League One and it can be difficult to take a step back and look at the bigger picture.
But that is something Ian Evatt has tried to do after three-and-a-half years in the dugout at Wanderers.
The club has seen huge change, both on and off the pitch, since Evatt took charge in the summer of 2020 to now be in contention for promotion to the Championship.
Speaking last week, he told the EFL Podcast: “It is quite topical at the moment with what has happened with Jurgen Klopp – the life of a manager, how stressful it can be and how much sacrifice comes with the job.
“But it is important that we try to give ourselves a minute to think about where we have come from on this journey.
“We were near the bottom of League Two, the club was completely broken and we had no connection with the fan base. Even our own staff were visiting food banks not so long ago.
“Getting promoted in my first season, stabilising and winning the EFL Trophy last season, getting to the play-offs and now having a real opportunity.
“It has been an incredible journey but we feel genuinely like we are just starting. There has been a lot of work behind the scenes on re-building the foundations to enable us to have sustained success.
“That is our aim and goal, we want to get back to the Premier League, but to be able to achieve that goal takes time and a process. We are part of the way along that journey right now.”
Evatt is still young for a manager but has already achieved plenty in the game since his first permanent position at Barrow.
“I have never missed (playing). I loved my career but I much prefer this,” he reflected. “I was fortunate enough to play and score in every division and be promoted out of every division.
“I got the most out of myself because I wasn’t the most talented and I certainly wasn’t a good athlete. I wouldn’t recruit myself nowadays!
“I love my job now. Did I ever think it would be this difficult? No, but is has changed me as a person. I have a huge passion, not just for managing people but for coaching and the tactical detail.
“I am constantly evolving and learning, and we have a clear identity and way of playing. People speak about Plan B and Plan C but we just want to be really god at Plan A, and I think we are doing that.
“I have used more than 100 players in my almost four years here because we have had to constantly adapt and improve because the gaps between the tops of the divisions is getting bigger and bigger.
“We are not in it to be mediocre, we are in it to compete. Hopefully, once we get out of this league – whether it is this season or in the future – we will be ready to compete in the Championship. That takes hard work and a lot of sacrifice.”
Wanderers brought in several fresh faces in the January window including Aaron Collins, who joined from Bristol Rovers to become the club’s most expensive signing in a decade.
Evatt is grateful to the board for their backing and hopes the business will give the Whites a boost heading into the business end of the campaign.
“A huge thank you to the board, the commercial team and everyone else who has rebuilt the club to enable us to purchase players again,” he said.
“There was a stage where we would beg, borrow and steal from everybody and now we are able to cherry pick our recruitment based on our playing style and identity.
“Our board have backed us once again to strengthen the squad this January and we are pleased.
“It certainly makes it difficult for me to pick an 11 and an 18 when everyone is fit, but we would rather do it from a position of strength than not.
“I think we have done good business and hopefully it will give us enough to get over the line.”
Bolton’s destiny is still firmly in their own hands, with three games in hand on leaders Portsmouth and two on second-place Derby.
“We have put ourselves in a really strong position to hopefully compete for promotion, which was our target at the start of the season,” the manager explained.
“But we know it is going to be really tough. There are lots of games to go in a short period of time and we are going to have to earn it.”
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