To roll up your sleeves: o que isso significa?

In Brazil, we're very used to a mexican sitcom called Chaves. We grew up to it and it's still part of many generations to come. The thing is, a character that plays the mother of a very spoiled little boy always fights with her neighboor nextdoor mostly to protect her son from him. What's funny is that every time she gets ready to get into a physical fight with him, she rolls up her sleeves and slaps him in the face.  When you roll up your sleeves, you prepare for hard work.

For example, one day you decide to paint all your house yourself. You wanna save money and decided that you wouldn't hire any professional painter this time. So a few moments before you get your hands dirty, you say: Now I'm going to roll up my sleeves and get to work! That expression
works not only when the work you're talking about is physical, but any kind of work. For example, you reserve your whole evening to study for a test you're doing the next day and before you get everything prepared and ready to go, you say: Now it's time to roll up my sleeves and jump right into my books. That's it for today guys. Take care!