Some will say, that a researcher is someone that publishes papers and is a member of a science community. They will tell you about reading and writing papers, citations, surveys, reviews, related work, evaluations, latex, conferences, workshops, collaborations, grants, postdoc, etc...
For me, a researcher is a character. A character of someone who has curiosity for knowledge and to reveal the unknown. Curiosity that leads him to ask "how could it be?" and the courage to say "I will solve this". He also needs integrity and humbleness to say "I did not solve it yet". Research is like looking for something in a dark room, using the sense of touch. The chances for finding what you are looking for in the first try is low. So it requires patience and grit.
A researcher also has imagination full of innovation that leads towards a vision. The enthusiasm for the idea gives a sense of responsibility for carrying out this vision to become true. To build the path from the theory to its conception. A path which no one ever walked through. That makes the researcher a pioneer and one who inspires others, and requires of him to be ingenious and inventive to overcome the obstacles up and coming.
As I see researchers, they care less about monetary profit and more about having a place to express their capabilities and to bring something new to the world (it could be in the form of a published scientific paper and it could also be by creating a new product or imparting a new habit).
I aspire to be a great researcher!
