Does this sound natural?

Rather than putting on a show for anybody, why don't you call a spade a spade, so that you'll generally get a favorable response.

Question

Does this sound natural?

Rather than putting on a show for anybody, why don't you call a spade a spade, so that you'll generally get a favorable response.

Answer

Seems fine to me, though I'd need context to be sure. I would write it thus:

"Rather than put on a show, why not just call a spade a spade so as to get a generally favorable response."

Answer

I’d say not really. The meaning isn’t really clear, and I wouldn’t use ‘to call a spade a spade’ except in the first person.