A lot of comment on “see and avoid” on this thread. I am an ex glider pilot and have had the honour of flying 300 hours with an ex member of the Royal Observers in the right hand seat. See and avoid may not be 100% but some people are much better at it than others. The more effort you put in and the more experience you gain trying, the better it will work for you. Nick (my ROC mate) can spot an aircraft, identify type and tell you the threat level very early in an encounter. By seeing what can be done I have improved towards his standard, but I still have a long way to go.
It is also worth investing in an aircraft you can see out off, as some are much harder than others and therefore less safe.
Rod1