Simply take smaller positions. If you have $100K and you are long one Sep ES which is trading at 1270, then you are long $63,500 worth of ES futures and are not using any leverage because you have $100K in your account. If you are long 2 Sep ES then you are long $127,000 worth and are using some leverage at that point. But that is a lot less leverage than the maximum of being long 22 Sep ES with a value of $1,397,000. I came up with 22 contracts based on $100,000 / $4,500 initial margin requirement = 22.22 contracts.
I get the impression The OP wants to trade smaller than an one ES? Apparantly 14:1 leverage scares him or he has less than $4500 in his account!
I manage accounts. Some of them are small. As a rule we diversify. ES hasn't much leverage/volatility, CL is. On my personal account I can trade both stocks and futures. On managed accounts only futures (with a different CFM). ETFs as USO would be great for small accounts. Other strategies include selling options, and perhaps trading the E-MiNY oil contract.
I wonder whether the owners of the accounts you manage, are aware of your policy of soliciting free advice from total strangers on how to manage their money. And if they're aware, whether they approve. I wonder whether it might make some of the a little queasy.
I'm not following any recomendations immediately. Not even if Warren Buffett or Goldman Sachs gave me advice. I just want some ideas to study, analyse, develop possible scenarios, and ONLY THEN, I may put them to work.
I wonder whether the owners of the accounts you manage, are aware of your policy of soliciting free advice from total strangers on how to manage their money. And if they're aware, whether they approve. I wonder whether it might make some of the a little queasy. Well, I do not see the problem here. There is not way to know every thing before manage some one else money. Every situation is difference.