The slow bird flies first
Refers to when people with limited ability begin a task early so as not to fall behind
Negative
不过，他也很努力，虽然他不聪明，但是他听了妻子的话，笨鸟先飞，我想他一定能取得大的成就 | Bùguò, tā yě hěn nǔlì, suīrán tā bù cōngmíng, dànshì tā tīng le qīzi de huà, bènniǎoxiānfēi, wǒ xiǎng tā yīdìng néng qǔdé dà de chéngjiù
However, he works very hard. Despite the fact that he isn't very smart, he listened to his wife, and he starts his tasks early to make up for his lack of talents. I believe he will be very successful.
[Source]
我能力不如别人，只好笨鸟先飞了 | Wǒ nénglì bùrú biérén, zhǐhǎo bènniǎoxiānfēi le
I'm not as capable as other people, so I have to start everything early
[Source]
None
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Careful — this is not the same thing as "early bird gets the worm"
This is often used in a self-deprecating manner
《状元堂陈母教子》(Zhuàng Yuán Táng Chén Mǔ Jiào Zi), a work by 关汉卿 （Guān Hàn Qīng). 关汉卿 was one of the great dramatists of the Yuán Dynasty (元, 1279 - 1368).
This chengyu stems from a line in the work listed in the "Origin" section above