Not so nice girl!

Dear Suz, my question isn't so much as question as a problem. I am a nice person, but people don't think I am because I say whatever is on my mind. I don't see the benefit in making things sound nice to protect someones feelings, I think that is denying my own feelings and passion about a topic. How do I make people understand that I am not mean or nasty, I just speak bluntly and don't pretty it up to make it sound nice so they don't get offended. ~Nice Girl

Dear Nice Girl,
I am sure you have heard all the advice about biting your tongue, thinking before you speak and counting to 10 before you speak. However none of that matters to you because you don't believe that what you are saying is a problem. So I won't waste your time with those words of advice, since it seems as if you would simply count to 10 then say what you were already going to say.

People skills are something that you develop, they involve getting your point across without hurting peoples feelings or speaking bluntly. This is not to say that you aren't right in your thinking, but that there is a better way to express it. There is an old expression that says "You catch more flies with honey than vinegar" this is one for you to remember. If you want people to see how nice you are, and listen to your opinions, and possibly even agree with you, you will have to learn to "pretty it up". That doesn't mean backing down from your stance on anything, or even holding anything back, simply adjusting your tone and words to make your point more eloquently.
It is obvious that somewhere deep down you do find this problematic and do want to change how people perceive you, or else you wouldn't have written. My advice is to find some videos on Youtube of some public speakers and work on adapting your thoughts to fit a more vanilla profile of conversation. You will still be expressing your opinion, and even passion, but you won't leave people thinking "jeez what a b*tch!" Just a thought.