Mind your P's and Q's: o que isso significa?

Suppose you're going to attend a job interview in a few days and now you're feeling very anxious and insecure about it. You've been unemployed for a while now and you really need that job, you can't mess up that opportunity this time. So you turn to a friend of yours for good advice on how to cause a good impression, answer the questions correctly and avoid making a fool of yourself. Among the many things she tells you, one of them calls your attention. She says: When you're being interviewed, try to mind your P's and Q's. Do you know what that means? Read on!

When you mind your p's and q's, you behave properly, you make an effort to be polite and display good manners. There are certain theories on how that expression emerged, but the one that sounded more convincing to me comes from the advice that children are told while acquiring literacy. They're encouraged to mind the letters p and q for better reading skills. Speaking of children, it's very usual to see parents telling them to mind their p's and q's before leaving home. For example, you're taking your children to visit one of your friends but before you step outside you make them promise they'll mind their p's and q's. That means you want them to behave well and not embarrass you in front of others. That's it for today guys. Take care!