to better understand others, you can practice _______________ skills.

To better understand others, you can practice active listening skills. Active listening involves fully focusing on the speaker, holding eye contact, nodding, and waiting before responding to truly understand their message. Other essential skills to improve understanding include perspective-taking (putting yourself in someone else's shoes), asking open-ended questions, using "I" statements to express feelings without blame, paraphrasing to confirm understanding, and developing emotional literacy to recognize and articulate emotions effectively. These skills help foster empathy, improve communication, and strengthen relationships by making others feel heard and understood.