The 3rd Language

OPINION | By Ryan D. Chamberlin, Member of the Florida House of Representatives and 30-Year Direct Sales Industry Veteran

Protecting Our Future. Protecting Our Industry.

If you were fortunate enough to be a part of the Direct Sales industry 30 years ago and you are still here today, it is for one simple reason:
You caught a vision, and you’re still holding onto it.

That vision, however, for most, has been blurred through recent trends. There has even been a question sometimes of whether the industry would survive.

It is my belief that it will — and that it can be bigger than ever.

In order to do so, however, this generation of companies will have to embrace what I call “The 3 Languages.”

Language 1: Field Language

The first is the common language known as “Field Language.”

This is the language of leadership, recognition, community — and how it is projected properly from a field leader’s perspective. Anyone that has built large organic teams for a long period knows exactly what I’m talking about.

For over two decades I had the opportunity to build and sustain large organizations within our industry, and I’m here to tell you that this is a language that most owners get frustrated with — unless they embrace it.

Language 2: Corporate Language

The second language is “Corporate Language.”

This is the language of ownership, vision, and all things from an operational view. Some corporate teams understand field language, but many don’t.

Also, most field leaders don’t understand corporate language and therefore lean on the ownership and corporate team to clarify its position — by learning to speak both languages.

These first two languages have been battle-tested for the entire span of Network Marketing history. And many companies ultimately fail to hold teams together because of underestimating the importance of balance between the two languages.

Language 3: Legislative Language

There is, however, a new and emerging 3rd language — what I call “Legislative Language.”

Once only spoken by a few large companies, this is a new language now necessary for the sake of the industry’s future. And my belief is that the companies who embrace it will separate themselves from the rest.

After spending 30 years learning and executing both field and corporate languages with success, I decided to pursue a political dream and am now a member of the House of Representatives in Florida.

Come to find out, I’m one of the few elected officials in the United States whose full-time career was Direct Sales for more than two decades — and who can now write legislation to protect the industry we all love.

And that is exactly what I’m doing.

Legislation to Protect and Elevate Our Profession

In 2025, working together with leaders in both the ANMP and the DSA, I filed HB249, one of the first bills in decades in the State of Florida designed to protect and elevate the Direct Sales industry and profession.

Bringing the topic of Direct Sales to the conversation with both the House and the Senate was eye-opening, and something I’m excited to now give new insights into — for the benefit of legitimate Direct Sales companies across our entire industry.

The fact is, legislatures don’t understand what we do, and this makes us subject to misinformation, which leads ultimately to elected officials potentially making permanent decisions about an industry they know nothing about! We can’t allow this.

The good news is: we can fix it. 

And as companies, your field leaders need to know that you have their back.

Bottom line: we do have power. And we have this power because we have people that believe in what we do. Our new job is to harness this power and to be louder than any naysayers that would try to re-define our future. We can do this by being intentional — and by becoming fluent in the “Legislative Language.”

Speaking the Language

The language is quite simple. It starts when companies and distributors in our industry intentionally seek to develop proper relationships with their state and federal legislatures.

This is important — so that when the subject of our industry comes up (and it will), we have inside strength protecting our future… and specifically YOUR company.

And better than just protecting our future is to help further legitimize it: by proactively enacting legislation that is state friendly for entrepreneurs, independent contractors, and specifically network marketers.

Learning these 3 languages has become both the present and the future of our industry — and specifically, your company.

Honored to Serve

I am honored to serve in a unique role now, as one of the few US state government elected officials who also has the perspective of having built a successful 30-year career as a network marketing professional, serving in both top field leader and executive roles. Feel free to reach out to me personally if I can be of service. I welcome hearing you share your thoughts, ideas and issues — real insights from the leaders of our profession.

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Ryan Chamberlin is a Keynote Speaker, Consultant, and Member of the Florida House of Representatives (R-FL) with a 30-year field and corporate leadership background in Direct Sales. Ryan is also a Board Member of the Association of Network Marketing Professionals (ANMP).