Politeness

Joseph Joubert:

Politeness is the art of being bored without boredom or (if you prefer) of bearing boredom without being bored.

The Notebooks of Joseph Joubert: A Selection , trans. Paul Auster (New York: New York Review Books, 2005).

Also from Joseph Joubert
Another world : Form and content : Resignation and courage : Self-love and truth : Thinking and writing