> It is better to be efficient than polite. Better to be predictable than "nice".

I probably agree on the second, but I think the first is subject to what the definition of 'better' is. If someone has to give me, say, a bad evaluation of my performance, then the most efficient way for them to do it is to walk up, say "terrible performance" (and possibly list reasons), and leave—but I certainly don't feel, as the recipient of the news, that that is the best way for it to be delivered.