Hi, it’s Fliss at Zen.

 In today’s insight into Communication and Language Mastery, I’d like to talk to you about expanded sensory language – you may have heard of this as VAK language.   It’s a hugely important part of both Neuro-Linguistic Programming (NLP)  and psycholinguistics, so I have lived and breathed this for well over two decades now. 

Expanded sensory language works on the premise that each of us, as individuals, have a preferred language through which we communicate, and through which we like to be communicated with.

It may be that you’re aware of it, it may be that you’re not. What you will feel, and see and hear is a disconnect if somebody doesn’t reflect your language back to you, or if someone speaks to you in a very conflicting way.   At worst, not only will your message not land, but it’s likely to be misconstrued. Your attempts at rapport building will not just be rebuffed, but it’s likely there’s going to be an actual disconnect. You may have seen it yourself, someone standing there saying, ‘I don’t understand why he can’t hear what I’m saying’, and the other person perhaps in their mind is just saying, ‘Why? I feel so confused.'

So, let’s get into that language. Traditionally we’ve talked about VAK because there are three core languages – but, actually there is a fourth as well. We talk about V as Visual, we talk about A as Auditory, and K as Kinaesthetic. But, we also have Auditory Digital, which is our fourth language. 

People with a Visual sensory language, you’ll recognise them because they’ll be using visual descriptive words.  They’ll be talking about how something looks.  Their descriptives will be very visual, and may be colour based.

An Auditory person is likely to say something like, ‘Does that ring a bell?’ or 'I love how that sounds’.   They’re very much linked into language which is connected with the sense of sound, with musicality, with tonality.

And then you’ve got the Kinaesthetic folk. They’re all about touching and how things 'feel'.  They might say to you, ‘it just doesn’t feel right’.

Finally, take Auditory Digital, our fourth category.  They're very much more logical, they’re the kind of people who will talk about feelings - but they might also use words like 'arrange' and 'consider'.  They're much more cerebral I guess than the others. 

You can have some very significant disconnect if you’re talking to someone who has an extreme Kinaesthetic language and you’re talking to them with an extreme Auditory Digital language.  You will absolutely clash.   So, listen for those words, and change your communication patterns.

This works, obviously, much better when you’re on a one-to-one basis, but you can also profile the likelihood of the preferred sensory language of your audience, or you can cycle your VAK. You can use language which is going to stroke each of the preferential expanded sensory languages. 

I’ve produced a sheet of expanded sensory language examples, and I’ve included single words. So under Visual you’ve got words like: ‘bright, clear, focused, hazy, reveal, see, show, view, visualise’. Under Auditory, you’ve got things like: ‘click, hear, listen, patter, question, resonate, rings a bell. For Kinaesthetic, you’ve got temperature-based words: ‘cold and hot’, you’ve also got ‘cool and hard’, things like ‘push and scrape, slip and smooth, and tap into’. And under Auditory Digital words like: ‘consider, decide, experience, motivate, perceive, remember, sense,and think’. 

I’ve also put together, on the back of this, some specific phrases.  So a Visual person might talk about something ‘appearing’ to them, it might be that they have a ‘dim view’ of something. From an Auditory perspective they can talk about describing in detail, they can talk about ‘hearing something loud and clear’, they can talk about asking someone to ‘hold their tongue’.   For Kinaesthetic, it could be they talk about ‘firm foundations, get a handle on, get a hold on, get a grip of’; and Auditory Digital, they’re going to be asking ‘discern the answer, experience the best, gain knowledge of, give me your opinion, I sense, I know’. 

So, that’s just a really brief insight. If you’re able to elicit the expanded sensory language preference of the person you’re communicating with, you can ensure that your message lands so much more effectively and that you really do start to build the groundwork and the foundation stones for genuine ongoing rapport. 

Any questions, as always, do put them in the comments below.

I’ve got some fantastic insights planned over the next few weeks and beyond, so do tune back in.  Use the #zencommsmaster and you’ll be able to see the entire thread of this content as we roll it out over the coming weeks and months. Thanks so much and speak soon. 

Meet the Author

As one of the UK's leading experts in the applied psychology of language, Fliss has helped Boards, leadership teams, and c-suite executives from across the world to communicate with influence, integrity, and impact. A psycholinguist, voice dialogue, and NLP Practitioner, Fliss is also trained in influence and persuasion, and behavioural psychology, and is a certified empowerment coach and trainer. Fliss heads-up The Ultimate Advantage, a dedicated language and communications mastery coaching and training consultancy, as well as Zen Communications, a successful PR and content agency. She regularly speaks on all aspects of compelling communication and is a popular podcast guest.