We’ve recently been doing some training on active listening. What makes it “active”  instead of “passive” is the listener’s presence and intent. Active listening is listening to comprehend, understand, learn, and only respond when it’s appropriate. When we wrapped up the training, I found a quote that I really liked: “When we don’t push our agenda to feel competent, we can better listen to other person’s desires.”  I think this encapsulates active listening perfectly. 
Listen in as Dawn discusses active listening and how listening to respond can be obstructive to effective communication.
Other podcast episode referenced: Are you purpose driven? and Is your response about you or them?