Episode
Power of Laughter: Yao Huang, Founder, Wonder Women
- Podcast
- How We Connected
- Published
- Apr 14, 2026
- Duration seconds
- 2673
- Processing state
not_requested- Canonical source
- https://www.chamberofconnection.org/
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Summary
On this week's How We Connected from the US Chamber of Connection, hosts Charlotte Massey and Aaron Hurst discuss some recent connection experiments: Aaron hosted mostly male friends to watch Michigan win a basketball championship, while Charlotte attended a Seattle Community Builders Dinner where participants did simple drawing and collage activities about ideal “third places.” The interview this week is with Yao Huang, founder of Wonder Women, a largely invitation-based “whisper network” that began as casual women’s dinners and has grown over 20 years to about 20,000 women leaders across 30 cities. Yao emphasizes humor, curated guest lists, repeatable hosting scripts, and women-only spaces to create trust, friendship, and mutual support. 00:00 Intro and Check-In 01:54 What's Been on Our Minds 13:00 Meet Yao 13:30 Yao's Origin Story 14:10 Standup Comedy and Finding the Real Yao 14:55 Wonder Women: How It Started 21:26 The Formula: Curating Connection 25:49 Community Ripple Effects and The Vouch Network 34:00 Secret Sauce: Extroverts, Energy and Fun 40:27 Reflections --- How We Connected explores the conversations that power communities across the United States. Aaron Hurst and Charlotte Massey share what they’re building at the US Chamber of Connection and speak with leaders whose work strengthens local connection. Episodes offer human stories, practical insights, and ideas you can use in your own community. Aaron Hurst , Co-Founder of the US Chamber of Connection, is a longtime entrepreneur focused on purpose and community. He founded Imperative and the Taproot Foundation and wrote The Purpose Economy . Charlotte Massey , Co-Founder of the US Chamber of Connection, leads community programs nationally. A Forbes 30 Under 30 honoree and former organizer and founder, she…