I just wanted to say …
I remember my first year in college, there was a student in one of my classes (this class only had 12 students) who frequently prefixed her comments in class with “this might stupid, but …”, and then went on to say something which most people thought was stupid. In other words, it probably would have been better not to say that at all. I feel much the same way about “I just wanted to say”. More often than not, when I hear someone start off this way, it is likely that something that petty, trivial, or mean is about to come out of the person’s mouth. I am not immune to this trap. I certainly do it sometimes, but I am actively working on not doing it, and instead, applying the THINK principle, about which I recently posted. Moreover, in most cases, instead of uttering some words about how I am about to say something, it is better if I just say it. No hedges or stalling techniques are necessary. First, think about what you want to say, and then say it. Period.