All about me

I'm stuck. I try to be outgoing, I try to be there; but at the same time I know not to push too hard; because when I'm pushed too hard I shut down & push that person away. I wanna be there to support someone who I don't know very well. But, how? I try to think back to when I had to be there for people face to face & I guess it just came so easy to me. But now, I find it hard to find the right words. The right words to calm, to sympathize, to make smile, to laugh. The right words to make that person feel like they're not alone.
I've found myself in other peoples' shoes a LOT. So, my experience & my advice tends to go a long ways. But how do you get someone to open up to you, when you're not face to face?
It goes back to the pushing part; if I push to hard I think I'll push this person away & this person to shut down. But, I don't want this person to feel as though they are all alone. I may only be 23, 24 coming October; but I've experienced a LOT in my short life. Enough for my friends & even frienemies to come to ME for advice.
I've already reached out & let this person know that I'm there for them. I just know this person NEEDS somebody; but I'm scared to push them too much.

How am I to know when to push & when to stop? Especially when it's not face to face?