Allright let me start off by saying I am not a good SL, I rarely go as SL but when i do i hate getting killed because my Squadies play follow the leader.
So here is a quick little guide to keep your SL alive.
1. Never play follow the Leader! Sl's are much at fault as their Squad member's are. If you dont know what it means look at the illustration below(Yes i know my paint skills suck)
See whats wrong here? Even a newbie with little knowledge of this games knows to shoo the guy infront first as he is most likely the SL.
Solution: Use move markers and choose a fall guy of sorts, That can be wasted until you plant you're next rally. If using follow the leader formation. Best bet would be to avoid it at all costs as you can still be ambushed from the sides.
2. Use different formations other then Follow the Leader. Here is my favorite which took me a long time to finally achieve with a 6 man squad.
(As you can see the enemies are in red)
It's called cross for a reason. Sl is inside the cross and has a human shield on all 4 sides. Increasing you're chance of surviving in an ambush.
Also their is the reverse cross
(It's better to have 2 fall guys then one)
3. What weapon you have out is sometimes a dead give-away to who you are! A skilled player does not look at the model first when trying to eliminate the Squad leader they look at the weapon. This is especially true for the real Spec-ops and Sniper squads who specialize in Interrupting enemy operations.(By true Spec-ops and Sniper squads. I dont mean the guys who get the Kits for the Full auto carbine or the Double zoom rifle, And go solo everywhere. I tell you guys later)
This is especially true for Militia! When in a conventional army it's really no big deal, Because you can always make sure someone else has a Rifle with Optics to keep the heat off you, But the Militia have only 1 guy with an AK101, And As impractical as this sounds switch to your scorpion, Because not once have i ever been killed first holding the scorpion in .6 and .7 when ambushed, I've survived long enough for my squad to regroup on me. Hell most enemies dont deem you a threat if you have a side-arm out. They prefer to go for the guy with the AK47 or SKS.
If you do by any chance get killed first as SL it's either the guy is behind you and sees your radio pack, Or more likely you had your AK101 out.
Note these tips are suited more for militia on fool's road then any other faction and map. And no insurgents because they cant place rallies.
) to keep an eye on one fireteam while you keep the rest in line.