The shiny lightbulbs and plus signs that show up above your Sim’s head indicate they’re working on leveling up a skill closely connected to their aspiration.
The plus signs and lightbulbs are also an indicator that a lot trait is affecting your Sim’s current activity in a positive manner. This means they’re leveling up their skill quicker thanks to that lot trait.
For example, if you have the Homey trait and your Sim is cleaning, cooking, or making drinks, then they’ll get the little light bulbs and plus signs.
This lot trait helps Sims level up their Cooking, Mixology, Handiness, and Gardening skills faster.
The Convivial lot trait often triggers the lightbulbs and plus signs when your Sim is working on improving their Charisma skill.
As you can see in the screenshot above, my Sim got those plus signs and lightbulbs while practicing making drinks. She’s an aspiring Mixologist. Making drinks allows her to improve her Mixology skill.
How to remove gold lightbulbs and sparkle spots in The Sims 4
There are two ways to remove gold lightbulbs, plus signs and sparkle spots in The Sims 4. You can remove the lot traits that trigger them or install a mod to remove the special effects.
Removing the lot traits will affect the skill-building rate. This means your Sims will need more time to level up their skills.
Happy Simming!