Dont worry about cutting the leafs off, they will die and fall off when the plant is done with them. Consider them solar panels for your plant.
In a pot that size you wont want to let her get much taller before flowering, she looks quite bushy already.
you may want to consider moving to a larger pot, or flower now, depending on how big you want it to get.
This depends on your space constrictions, just be aware that plants can double or more in size during flower