don't count your chickens before they hatch

Don't count your chickens before they hatch.

proverb Don't make plans based on future events, outcomes, or successes that might not come to pass. When my mom heard that I was preparing my campaign before even being nominated, she warned me, "Don't count your chickens before they hatch." Why are you begging to drive my car to school tomorrow when you still need to take your license test in the morning? Don't count your chickens before they hatch, babe!
See also: before, chicken, count
Farlex Dictionary of Idioms.

don't count your chickens before they hatch

Don’t spend or try to profit from something not yet earned. This expression comes from Aesop’s fable about a milkmaid carrying a full pail on her head who daydreams about selling the milk for eggs that will hatch into chickens and make her so rich she will toss her head at offers of marriage; but she prematurely tosses her head and spills the milk. It was, like so many Greek fables, translated into modern European languages and passed on. The expression was in use figuratively by the sixteenth century and appeared in proverb collections soon afterward.
See also: before, chicken, count, hatch
The Dictionary of Clichés by Christine Ammer
See also:
  • teach a man to fish
  • it takes a village
  • village
  • the best-laid plans
  • the best-laid plans go astray
  • the best-laid plans of mice and men
  • best-laid plans go astray, the
  • for want of a nail
  • For want of a nail the shoe was lost; for want of a shoe the horse ...
  • change horses in midstream, don't
References in periodicals archive
"Don't count your chickens before they hatch." Very old--but very good--advice.
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Commenting on the chances of his proposal resolving the decree dispute, Berri, in remarks published by newspapers, was quoted as saying "Don't count your chickens before they hatch."
Berri waits for Aoun on decree crisis
However, Berri was quoting as telling the MPs: "Don't count your chickens before they hatch," AS SAFIR reported.
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Don't count your chickens before they hatch in business but do all the research you can.
Astrology
So don't count your chickens before they hatch, and enjoy the arrival of spring--knowing that with the right amount of sunshine, water and loving care, dreams can take tangible form in a thriving business and the stacks and stacks of high-denomination currency that this success, in turn, creates.
Letter to our readers
Don't count your chickens before they hatch in business but do all the research you can even if it means giving up some of your spare time this weaken.
Your Stars
"The expression you use in England is 'don't count your chickens before they hatch'," says Benitez.
Benitez warns title challenge won't come easy; 'Premiership is the trophy we want - but we must be focused': BRAMALL LANE, TOMORROW, KICK-OFF 12.45PM