Edit: and what do you need to know to be one?
In: Economics
Generally a broker connects a buyer to a seller, and more often than not, the broker represents the buyers best interests.
kkeahi is correct, although typically the individual stock broker (technically called a Registered Representative) does not connect buyers to sellers, they work for a brokerage (technically called a Broker/Dealer) and *it* matches buyers to sellers. But this is nitpicking.
Broker: Match buyer to seller
Dealer: Executing trades in its own account
In order to work in the field you must be sponsored by a brokerage to take the [Series 7](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Series_7_exam) Registered Representative exam. If you pass, depending on the state, you may also need to take another test called the series 63. The series 7 isn’t simple. You will need to study, some more than others. Once you pass, if you want to actually work in the field you are going to need [E&O insurance](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Professional_liability_insurance#Errors_and_omissions) as well, which can be expensive.
Source: passed my Series 7 and [Series 24](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/General_Securities_Principal_Exam) about 20 years ago, though I don’t work in the field anymore.
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