Is there an idiom or a proverb meaning 'if you don't know how to do something, then don't start doing it in the first place?'
Your friend accepts to do a research project for someone but he doesn't know how statistics works. He asks you to help him out. You want to say something like 'If you don't know how to fly, then don't jump off the cliff.'
My best find up to now is 'If you can't stand the heat, get out of the kitchen' but it doesn't imply knowing or not knowing something. It's more about persistence or tolerance.
Best Answer
Fools don't realize that something may be a lot more complicated than they think it is. This is a general statement, and in that respect it is unlike your "Don't jump off the cliff if you don't know how to fly." which is said directly to the person about to fail.
Another possibility is:
It means don't take on more than you're capable of doing.
That's not a proverb, but it resembles one.