Related:

A couple of months in the laboratory can frequently save a couple of hours in the library. -Frank Westheimer

This can be taken to extremes. Some years ago, a popular historical novelist told me something along the lines of "I often talk to people who say 'I'm writing a historical novel', at which point I'm wondering whether this could be a potential competitor, '...but I'm still doing the research', at which point I realize that there's not a lot to worry about." Looking into background and what others have done is valuable, but it's pretty easy to let it prevent you from ever taking action yourself.

It's a tricky balance, though...

I have heard this before as : "Days of doing can save months of thinking"

isn't that the exact-inverse?

Amusingly, both are useful and valuable statements.

I particularly like wearied experience dripping from 'Weeks of coding can save hours of planning' :)