Sunny Choi quit her six-figure job to breakdance in the Olympics: ‘For the first time, I was betting on myself'

Around this time in 2022, Sunny Choi had a six-figure salary, an apartment in New York City and a job as director of global creative operations at Estée Lauder. Still, the 35-year-old wasn't happy.

Choi was sick of the grind. The Wharton grad had a successful career with jobs including project manager roles at Juice Generation and Scholastic, but none brought her the joy that she got from breakdancing.

"No matter where I went, it was corporate that I couldn't stand," Choi recently told CNBC Make It. "I knew I wanted a way out, I just didn't know what that was gonna look like or if I'd ever get it. I had kind of resigned myself to [thinking] this might be my life forever because of the relative financial stability."

That all changed when breaking, as it is officially known, was added to the Olympic program. She had started practicing the sport in college and over the years become one of the best breakers in the world. Suddenly, Choi saw a chance to go from pursuing her passion in her free time to making it her top priority.

"I thought this was probably the best opportunity I'd get, timing-wise, to make this kind of a jump," she said. 

The decision to leave Estée Lauder and her salary wasn't easy. She called the prospect of stepping away from her job and into financial uncertainty "extremely challenging and very, very scary."

"I was at the stage of life where some of the 17-year-olds I'm competing against probably aren't yet," she said. "I was like 'Do I want to put off having children? Do I want to put off buying a home?'"

But for Choi, who as a teen dreamed of representing Team USA in gymnastics before knee injuries derailed her hopes, the opportunity to go for gold was worth the risk.

"For the first time, I was really, truly betting on myself," she said. "I think I had always been hedging my bets and doing what I felt was safe instead of throwing all my eggs in one basket and going for it and doing something that I really wanted to do." 

It took Choi six months to decide she was going to leave her job and another six months to finally quit in early 2023. In the interim, she set about financially preparing herself for no longer having a steady paycheck. 

"I changed my spending. I made sure I was saving enough to get me through the entirety of 2023 should I not secure any brand partnerships," she said. "Luckily, I did secure a number of partnerships that made sense for me." 

Choi, who spoke to Make It while promoting her partnership with Blume, said even with sponsorships "making a living off of breaking is not easy."

The reigning gold medalist at the Pan American Games hopes the Olympics helps create more opportunities for breakers to support themselves through sport.

"My hopes are that by the increased awareness that the Olympics gives to the breaking community, that we have an influx of interest and that we have more opportunity within our community to make money," she said. "Only time will tell."

Still, despite the fear, stress and uncertainty, Choi is happier now than she has ever been and wouldn't change any part of the journey that got her to where she is today.

"I wouldn't have it any other way," she said. "I don't think I could have appreciated it when I was 16 the way that I do now."

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