Are you a good listener?
If someone is talking to you, you should:
Be a real friend without being judgmental: Place yourself in the other person's shoes.
Have eye contact. Eye contact is important when you are listening.
Stop talking and be silent. It might sound obvious and trite, but one of the biggest obstacles to listening is resisting the urge to voice impulse thoughts.
Use empathetic sounding back at appropriate intervals during the conversation. It's helpful to "summarize and restate" or "repeat and encourage" the main points.
Have empathy while your listening to create a good response.
Offer to assist with any solutions if you have the ability, time and expertise.