Thanks to the organizers of the 3rd Annual Chemical Biology in the Hub event I was given an opportunity to open the meeting. To get us started, I thought it would be valuable to enlist the help of an auditorium full of chemical biologists to brainstorming about where we wanted our field to go next and what we wanted chemical biology to be. Why is this an important conversation to have at this point? In my view, chemical biology is still a youngish field. We have reached a stage of adolescence when we can do a great many things, we are energetic, we are excited, we continue to test the limits and we are definitely ready to dive into things that others may view as intellectually potentially dangerous! Our field is growing, thanks to many early career scientists who have been joining us. With this comes a growing responsibility to create a community that welcomes others and ensures their mentoring and wellbeing. Additionally, we have to be ready to be vocal and advocate for what it is that chemical biology can do and why it matters, and what our culture and standards are. And that’s why I decided to put this question of what it is that we want to be when we grow up in front of everyone in the audience at the Third Annual "Chemical Biology in the HUB" symposium.